Kill or Cure
by PoeticMosquitoes
Summary: A pact between civilized vampires to stop drinking from humans. A scientific breakthrough that will eradicate the risk to mortals forever. But betrayal and temptation are dangerous things... A collaboration between araeo and EchoesOfTwilight.
1. Blinded by Science

AN:

Let's all say it together: We don't own _Twilight_. No copyright infringement is intended. We do, however, own this plot and an embarrassing amount of HoboPattz pictures.

Well, it was bound to happen sometime...anyone who knows us could have guessed that there would be an araeo/EchoesOfTwilight collab at some point, though it was less a conscious decision filled with _ZOMG I LUV U we totes need to write together_'s and more like something out of a bad 80's horror movie. _Attack of the Rabid Plot Bunnies _went straight to video, but we hope our fic is a bigger success.

We're incredibly lucky to have the support that we do (thank you, Wonderbra), and so we have to say, as we both do separately when updating our other fics, a huge thanks to the fellow members of the LoD. We love you all, and Lisa, this is for you.

Thanks must go to ladyrip and karentwilighted for being awesomesauce betas, and to ilsuocantante and LaraIsAwkward for prereading and giving us their insight. You all rock.

One final thing: I (EchoesOfTwilight) write EPOV, and Ali (araeo) writes BPOV, but my chapters would be absolutely impossible without her assistance. Ali is my bio-nerd extraordinaire and she walks me patiently through the necessary science.

_Another final thing: Tutoring Em in bio is super easy...she remembers damned near everything. I'm jealous. Bye for now...see you soon!_

* * *

EPOV

My body went through the motions - running, scenting, stalking, pouncing - but the heart that sat unbeating in my chest felt no passion for this hunt, and venom did not pool in my mouth. That was all to the good. Mountain lion was my preferred prey on any normal occasion, but this time I took only a few mouthfuls before breaking the creature's neck and dropping it to the forest floor. It was a waste, yes, though the animal had just unknowingly done humanity a great service.

Carlisle's thoughts approached moments before he did, his mind analyzing, cataloging, hypothesizing at a speed with which only another vampire could keep pace. When he emerged into the clearing where I stood, he looked first at the carcass at my feet before turning his attention to me.

_How was it, Edward? _he asked silently, our habitual form of communication, developed over many decades together. _Still the same as the other times?_

"Vile," I answered simply. "Again, I am not sure if I can accurately describe the flavor, since it has been so long since I've tasted anything other than blood, but if I had to say, it was both bitter and rotten. Truly disgusting. Hunting did nothing to incite my bloodlust; it smelled exactly the way it tasted."

_Excellent. We have all had the same reactions_, _and this method of administration appears to deliver dosages at sufficient quantities,_ _which is very promising indeed. I will have to discuss it with Caius and Aro, but I believe we may be very close to beginning human trials._

I nodded. If we were successful in what we had been trying for several years to achieve, the last threat to humans from our kind would be eradicated completely. Physically we would always appear slightly different, our amber eyes and pale skin marking us as something other, but there would never again be any risk to the species who were weaker through no fault of their own. "Whose was that?"

_Emmett's, but we appear to have confirmed that the source of the base venom does not matter. The necessary components are identical in us all, thus the effect is the same on each of us regardless of who it came from. Using batches made from all the donations is merely easiest in terms of creating as much as we need in the shortest possible time span._

Carlisle retrieved the remains of my unappetizing meal and together we ran back through the woods the way we had come, breaking free of the thick trees precisely where his sleek black Mercedes was parked on a little-used highway. He tucked the carcass swiftly into the trunk, anxious to get back to the lab, excited by the prospects of finally starting the last leg of a journey he - and all of us - had been on for nearly twenty years.

Twilit scenery rushed past us as he drove at the fast pace we all preferred, every detail still evident to our enhanced vision. There were _some _positive things about being a vampire, but other aspects were a daily struggle.

And that was where it had all started. Centuries earlier, a charge had been led by a dedicated few for our kind to live a more humane existence, and slowly vampires the world over had shifted to a diet that consisted exclusively of animal blood. Newborns - adult humans who were bitten and underwent the transformation from mortal to immortal - were kept secluded until they had control of their thirsts, fed from woodland creatures subdued and brought to them. Carlisle, my creator-father who had taught me all I knew of this life, had been brought into a world where human life was sacrosanct, and the gift of immortality proffered only on those facing certain death. It suited him, for I doubted there was a more compassionate creature anywhere than the man who had refused to watch me die of Spanish influenza when he held another option in his hands.

We had disagreed often over the years on just how much of a _gift _it truly was; in my more bitter moments I had hurled at him the wish that he had let me go the way of my parents, also claimed by the epidemic that had taken so many. Recently, however - in the ways our kind define such a term - it had become easier, because we had a purpose.

A practicing physician, Carlisle had watched from bedsides and operating rooms the determined march of medical science, and as more was uncovered about those patients who breathed and bled and fell ill, his curiosity as to our own makeup grew. No blood of our own ran through our veins, our hearts did not beat, and yet we moved and talked and had mental capacities far more adept than humans. Ever the scientist, the call to find out how we _worked _was too strong for him to resist.

It did not take long for the focus of his research to narrow down to one specific feature: our venom. Capable of healing wounds, causing death, and changing a human into one of us, it was fascinating in its complexity. We wondered what other uses to which it could be put that we were then unaware of.

By the time our investigation began, Carlisle had witnessed the effects of his own venom on humans four times: myself, his mate Esme, my sister Rosalie, and her mate - my brother - Emmett. During the early years our research consisted mostly of heated debate, five voices all offering theories on exactly what purpose venom could serve. That became seven when, on a rainy night in the Fifties, Alice and Jasper arrived on the doorstep of the home in which we lived at the time.

Jasper had been one of the few outcasts - a vampire who endured the ostracism of our larger community in order to indulge in human blood. There were not many - a handful at most - all of whom lived in shadows and dark corners, emerging only at night to hunt before returning to their lairs. When Alice found him he was already attempting to reform himself, and in her he found a reason to succeed. She had brought him into the light and to Carlisle's coven, seeing with her gift of foresight that living among a group of vampires who operated within our accepted boundaries would be beneficial for her mate. His experiences did, however, lend an interesting perspective to our almost endless discussions, Carlisle asking Jasper every question he could think of on what it was like to hunt humans.

_You look even more intense than usual, Edward. Is something bothering you? _

I shook my head. "No, I was thinking of Jasper, and how he will feel if this works."

_I agree, I think he will be the most relieved of us all if - when - we achieve our goal. His guilt over hunting humans in the past is immense, and of course we all feel it with him. _

As much as I found my own talent for mind-reading tedious - even infuriating - at times, I did not envy Jasper, who not only felt his own emotions strongly, but absorbed and affected those of the people around him, too.

"What has to be done before human trials can begin?" I asked as the Seattle skyline came into view, jagged shapes against a backdrop of night. Carlisle was heading directly to our laboratory; I would run home from there. Having been to medical school twice, I understood perfectly the theory behind the testing and frequently assisted in the lab, but I knew there were still decisions to be made on the administrative side of our work, and they were not solely left to Carlisle.

_Well, I must speak with Aro and Caius - Marcus, too, if he chooses. This is as much their project as our own; any conclusion as to how to move forward must be made by all of us. The most important choice to be made is how to distribute the formula when perfected, as we will use that method for the initial tests to ensure consistency of results. _

"Putting it in the water supply was effective on animals." I thought of the stream near where I had just hunted so unsatisfyingly.

_Yes, and that is certainly an option. It also works via injection, as you know, but Caius has had some thoughts on an aerosol medium, so we must weigh each and determine how to reach as many humans as is feasible as quickly as possible. _The car dipped as Carlisle drove under the tower of steel and glass that housed our operation, crossing the nearly empty underground garage to slide into the space reserved for his use. _Tell Esme I will call her when I can, please, _he said, stepping out into the glare of fluorescent lights that were never turned off, even though nobody who visited this building needed them to see.

Above, vampires worked on every floor of our state-of-the-art facility that had taken decades to conceive of and build. Much of the equipment we required had needed to be custom made, in many cases using materials invented for the purpose. Advanced though normal medial science might have become, the instruments used were not designed to study venom. When finally we had created everything necessary, our experiments began in earnest, and had continued steadily since.

Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Easy, for creatures who have no need for sleep, or even the ability to do so.

"Of course," I said. "See you at home."

~*~

Alice was waiting for me on the porch, a book in her lap, though one glance at her mind told me she had not been reading it. She looked up when I emerged from the woods and jumped the river at the edge of the clearing in which our home sat, her eyes following my movements.

"How did it go?" she asked when I climbed the stairs, speaking aloud for Esme's benefit. My mother was listening, her pencil hovering above a sketchpad where she sat in her studio on the second floor.

"You have to ask?" I teased, ruffling her spiky hair.

My sister rolled her eyes. "No, I was just being polite. Try it sometime. It tasted really awful again for you, too?"

"Terrible. Living around humans who smell like that isn't going to be the most pleasant experience, but I cannot argue with Aro's reasoning. If they tasted like nothing at all, or something innocuous but not horrible, there may be some who still surrender to instinct. It has to be disgusting to be a deterrent."

I listened to Alice's silent musings, following her train of thought to her words. "Jasper's happy."

"Yes, Carlisle and I talked about that, as a matter of fact."

She smiled. "I know. And this will benefit all of us, not just him, but it'll be nice for him to feel less guilty. Protecting humans will do that."

"Where is he?" I could hear only my mother in the house, none of my other family members were home.

"He and Emmett went to - in Em's words - find something to eat that doesn't taste as if it was already dead_._ Rosalie took off to Denali to visit Tanya for a few days while they're gone; it's going to be sunny until Wednesday afternoon, so we can't go to school anyway."

"Movie night?" Esme suggested from upstairs. I called our assent as Alice hopped lightly to her feet, swinging open the door to reveal Esme already in the living room, disc in hand. I passed on Carlisle's message to her, equally pleased and envious at the soft smile that appeared on her face at his name. The credits slid across the screen in some graphic designer's idea of artistry as we settled ourselves on the large white couches, my legs stretched out along one while Esme and Alice shared the other.

I would never admit it out loud, but these were the easiest times for me. Though I loved my family deeply and could not imagine being away from them on any sort of permanent basis, their company in groups of two or three made me feel less alone than I would have if all six had been gathered around me, eyes trained on the television screen. Each would be in constant physical contact with his or her mate, reminding me - as if I needed it - that I had no one. Telling myself that Carlisle had been alone for more years than I had so far spent unmated was fruitless, losing the promise it inferred the moment I laid eyes on the two together.

The fact remained that he had found his mate, and I had not. Esme worried that I had been changed too young, that some part of me had not, at the human age of seventeen, been mature enough to allow for a connection with my one true match when I was sentenced to be an eternal teenager. I worried that she was right.

And so I threw myself into every preoccupation I could find: art, music, every scholarly subject that held even the most meager shred of interest, and some that held none. I attended schools of law and medicine, perfected the playing of several instruments, read endless books and even wrote a few. None of it gave much meaning to my life, and so relief had washed through me, a tidal wave of purpose, when plans for our research finally reached the stage at which they could be put into action.

The collaboration between ourselves and the Volturi had sprung up naturally, the result of a long discussion on the social evolution of our kind during a trip we had all made to Italy in the Sixties. The three brothers were old, even by vampire standards, and were the closest thing our kind had to royalty. They wandered the halls of an ancient stronghold, enforcing the few laws deemed necessary for our kind, emerging only to venture into the mountains to hunt. It had been their agreement that had finally given credence to the shift toward a diet of animal blood hundreds of years earlier, their decision that immortality was only as worthy as the good to which we put our time on earth. Carlisle had met them early in his vampire existence, finding their intelligence and appreciation of arts and sciences in line with his own, and though he had struck out after a time to pursue his own interests, the friendship had remained close. When we visited and they learned of Carlisle's interest in delving more deeply into our nature than any had before, they all offered assistance. Caius, like Carlisle and myself, was trained in medicine, and he in particular had interesting insights to offer. With the full force of our combined financial and intellectual resources behind us, we built our lab and began to work.

And now we were so very close to a breakthrough that, at the outset, we had not even dreamed of. We had started by isolating the individual components of venom, testing them separately and in various combinations. Despite the fact that we had many more hours in which to work and infinitely more capacity to understand what we were seeing than even the cleverest human could ever hope for, it was still a long and arduous process. Several of the compounds we identified did not even have names in conventional science, and even the ones that did still had to be broken down and subjected to a battery of tests.

Examining first the venom of those of us involved at the start, we learned that we still had DNA, though it was in stasis and did not mutate during replication. While the world around us watched the progress of the Human Genome Project, we were mapping our own genetic code. I left the family for a time, traveling the world on a mission for Carlisle, and a purpose-built case in the lab now held samples from every vampire we could locate who was willing to volunteer a sample, all of them animal feeders. Though I had found several of the outcasts, none would cooperate, fearing we would use the knowledge we were developing against them.

I supposed they were right, but at the time that had not been the intention.

As with many scientific discoveries, the clues to the possibility of what we were now doing had been found accidentally. Many of the necessary tests involved combining elements of venom with human blood to assess the reactions, hospitals around the state having unknowingly donated vials of it for our use. Early results had given Carlisle and Marcus hope of using our ability to heal ourselves to cure human disease, and that was still one aspect of what was done at all hours of the day and night at the tall tower in Seattle.

But we had discovered something else, too.

By spinning out certain components of venom, altering them, combining them with blood, and introducing the new 'drug' of sorts to the species from which the source blood had originated, we could make the creature smell different. Awful. Permanently, or so we thought. Early prototypes kept in the lab still smelled, years later, like nothing we would ever want to drink. The side effects were minimal; the drug insinuated itself into the subject's bone marrow, performed its change, and left behind only its desired effect and a very slight propensity toward improved overall health and healing - benefits conferred by our own inability to suffer sickness or permanent injury.

Provided the human trials were successful - and we had no reason to believe they wouldn't be - we would attempt to administer the drug to every human on the planet, nullifying their temptation to us, eradicating the risk we posed no matter how careful we were, or how dedicated to our lifestyle.

They would be safe - forever.

~*~

Thursday dawned slowly, the sun that had so uncharacteristically emerged for a few days hidden by clouds once more, my own sigh echoing the wind through the trees that surrounded us. It was time to return to the bane of my existence, the knowledge that keeping up our human charade was important not making high school any more bearable. At least it was not such an endless cycle anymore; for decades I had gone because the younger we pretended to be, the longer we could stay in any one place. Designing and building the lab had provided a welcome reprieve, as had the early years of our research, but we were again near a populated area and were forced to endure the pretense once more. With the need to stay near the lab came limits on our mobility, and this was one of the last places in the Pacific Northwest where we had not yet resided - at least in living memory. The memories of legends were much longer.

I was using my real name again, however. It was a small comfort to feel like myself, even if I was not entirely content with who that was.

"Two minutes, Edward," Alice called to my room on the third floor from the living room. Frowning, I closed my book and stood, my limbs heavy with apathy for the day ahead. Forgoing the stairs, I leapt easily from the window and ghosted to my car, standing next to the driver's side while I waited for my siblings.

They were as bored by school as I was, but better at hiding it, turning to their mates for amusement or distraction when the constant gossip and sidelong looks became too much to handle. I was forced to suffer not only those sights and sounds, but the inner thoughts our classmates chose not to voice. None of them were clever enough to discern the truth; their incessant chatter rather focused on an aspect of my mysterious family that hit entirely too close to home - that the strangely beautiful adopted children of the rich and generous Dr. Carlisle Cullen and his stunning wife were couples, discounting their youngest son Edward.

Daily, I attempted to ignore the spoken and silent musings of the crowd, wondering why I was the odd one out and - from the majority of the girls - thoughts that they would be more than happy to help me remedy the imbalance.

It almost would have been laughable, if the idea did not make me cringe. Not a single one of those shallow girls held my interest, and even if they did, they were human...and I was not.

"Jeez, bro. Smile," said Emmett as he and the others approached. My lips twitched, not in deference to his command but because he said it every morning. My moodiness was as much a routine as the drive to the building I so despised.

"Carlisle called, Edward," Jasper said. "He wants to know if you can go to the lab after school."

I nodded absently as we climbed in, happy that there was something I could look forward to after the tedium that awaited a few miles away. Miles that sped under the tires far too quickly, even with Rosalie and Emmett bickering in the backseat and Alice fiddling with the controls of my stereo. For the thousandth time I considered insisting that they drive themselves to school, but knew I never would. Their presence was at least company who understood me to an extent, and if nothing else, my small Volvo stood out much less in the school parking lot than Rose's BMW or Emmett's monstrous Jeep.

_Welcome to Forks, _proclaimed the sign we passed moments before reaching our destination. That was a joke. There was nothing particularly appealing about this small town in the middle of nowhere, except that the weather here suited us well.

Disjointed images flashed too quickly through Alice's mind to be identified; I didn't pause as I maneuvered the car into a spot, but my eyes shifted to hers. _No idea, _she thought. I shrugged. That was common enough, and whatever fragment of the future she was seeing would become clearer as decisions were made and actions carried out. It might not even be important.

I turned my back while Emmett and Rosalie exchanged an enthusiastic goodbye kiss, grateful that Alice and Jasper were much more reserved about the displaying of their affections. Jasper winced visibly, a look at his thoughts revealing the way my bitterness had washed over him. "Sorry," I mouthed, because it was true. I didn't wish that they hadn't all found their mates, I was simply sorry for myself.

"I get it," he said, sending a wave of peace in my direction. I smiled my thanks and wished him and Alice a good morning, Emmett appearing at my side. We had the same first period, an inane exercise in pretending to be as uncoordinated as the humans around us in whatever activity the Gym teacher set for the day.

"Ready?" he asked.

As I would ever be. I sighed heavily, nodding and leading the way to our least-favorite class. The voices grew louder, more concentrated in my mind as we entered the building and made our way to the locker room, changing as quickly as we could without arousing suspicion. There wasn't much risk, in truth - the boys around us were too concerned with comparing their plans for the weekend and arguing over the best places to indulge in underage drinking without getting caught by the town's police chief.

I wanted to protect them - wanted the drug to work - but that didn't mean I had to like them. Over the years I had, on occasion, met a human who held my intellectual interest for a brief time, but it was never long before my insight into their minds soured the connection. Either I saw parts of them that I found unpleasant, or the constant view into their thoughts began to feel intrusive as I imagined their response to finding out what I could see. I was sure the feeling was the same one I experienced when Aro touched my hand and he was given access to my own private musings.

I couldn't help my talent, and I did not have to make the decision to invade a person's thoughts in the way Aro had to consciously choose physical contact with another, but I was still aware that I was seeing and hearing things never meant to be shared.

Gym was its usual tiresome hour. Basketball, a sport I had never enjoyed much even when not required to modulate my movements so that I didn't do a perfect slam-dunk every time, or worse, accidentally break someone's arm when I tried to take the ball. Mostly Emmett and I stood on the fringes, participating only enough to make it appear that we _wanted _to play, but lacked confidence in our abilities.

"So Carlisle said you guys are really close to testing on humans?" Emmett asked, speaking too lowly and quickly to be heard amidst the din. His lips barely moved. Our project had never interested Emmett to the extent where he wanted to get really involved, preferring to leave the science to myself and Carlisle while he pursued other activities - usually with Rosalie.

"It would seem so. We have tested it on all the animal species in the area, and all had the same response to that."

"Hmm. How will that work? Just expose a bunch of humans to it and then sniff them?" He laughed briefly before his face turned serious. "I hope it's effective, Edward. Imagine how much easier this-" he gestured around the gym under the guise of making a failed swipe for the ball "-will be if it doesn't smell so freaking good in here."

He was right. The physical exertion had exacerbated the already tempting scents of blood all around us; venom pooled steadily in my mouth as twenty heartbeats increased. "I know," I agreed. "But the trials will have to be very limited at first. We are as sure as we can possibly be that the drug will have no negative effect on humans whatsoever, but if the unforeseen happens, Carlisle is adamant that we keep the damage to a minimum. It's only the integrity of the scientific method that is justifying human testing in his mind at all; you know as well as I do that he would find another way if he could, but there is nothing more for us to learn from animals. The distribution through the water supply was the last thing to test."

"That's Carlisle for you." Emmett grinned. "But I'm sure it'll be fine. You guys have put so much work into this, and the benefits..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "Must be weird, to be pioneers of our kind when we don't ever really change."

The bell rang, signaling the end of the torture session, and Emmett and I parted ways. He loped down the hall toward his Physics class, leaving me to go mechanically through the motions of the rest of my morning. Calculus first, where I picked answers I already knew from the teacher's mind, too bored to invest even the smallest fraction of a second in recalling the answer myself. History followed, a substitute teacher instructing us all to use the hour for independent study, which meant that I had to sit through unendurable chatter while textbooks remained in bags.

_So...tedious... _School was merely hours poured into the bottomless cup of forever, but there was no real substance to them.

It had begun to snow, and I amused myself with the thought that perhaps hell really was freezing over, only there was no reward, no unexpected occurrence to mark the event. Flakes tickled at my skin as I walked from class to the cafeteria, preparing for the play's next act.

The others hadn't arrived yet; I chose food I would not eat from a selection at which I barely glanced and claimed the corner table at which we always sat. Jessica Stanley had been behind me in the lunch line, and her thoughts were focused on me even as she joined Mike Newton and Tyler Crowley, flirting shamelessly with them both.

_He always smells so good. I totally should have asked him what cologne he wears...that would've started a conversation, and then he could have sat with me for lunch..._

I nearly laughed, catching myself just in time - it would have looked odd.

Emmett and Rosalie walked in, two pairs of amber eyes flicking almost imperceptibly to me before they gathered up their own trays and stocked them with food props. Em's hair was wet and Rose wore a self-satisfied smile - the only kind I had ever seen on her face, but I saw in her mind the perfectly aimed snowball she had landed on her husband's head, so for once it wasn't admiration of her own beauty.

Alice and Jasper arrived shortly thereafter, her expression serene, his slightly pained. Resisting was still a struggle for us all, even with the threatened ostracism that would come if one of us slipped, but especially for him. He knew life as an outcast, and though the recollections I saw in his thoughts communicated just how empty those years had been for him, he was still one of the few of us remaining who knew the luscious taste of human blood. Our memories were infallible; he could never forget. I gave him a sympathetic look as he and Alice sat, aware from his rush of gratitude that he had understood its meaning: how hard we were trying to make it better. Easier.

"Can you take care of getting yourselves home?" I asked. "I want to head straight for Seattle after school." Privately, I wondered what Carlisle had been unable or unwilling to tell me over the phone, instead passing the message through Jasper that my presence was needed at the lab. But my trust in my father was implicit; there was no question that I would go to him.

Emmett shrugged. "Sure, we can run. Think you'll be back for school tomorrow?"

My lips quirked. "If not, I'll have Carlisle write me a doctor's note to give to Mrs. Cope." Not that I would need one; my perfect grades were enough to keep the school administration happy with absences more frequent than those of my siblings, who only stayed away on those rare days when the sun shone here. I stood, picking up my untouched food and telling them all I would see them later. Alice was leaning into Jasper's side and Emmett had one arm draped around Rosalie's shoulders, casually toying with her hair. Disposing of my tray, I fled to my car in search of true solitude, rather than a mockery of it.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, if at its usual mind-numbing pace. I entertained myself in Chemistry by wishing that it was Biology instead and the look on the teacher's face if I were to submit the lab's research for my final grade. Spanish was spent correcting everyone's pronunciation under my breath.

Small pleasures, but the only ones I had during my wearisome days at school.

I didn't truly feel any measure of happiness until I was speeding toward Seattle, my car surrounded by frosted green trees and music of my own choice emitting from the stereo. After hours spent contributing nothing but the same rehearsed answers I'd given in classes for decades, my relief and excitement at heading into the unknown was palpable. Our experiments had consistently surprised and challenged us; a feeling I relished.

Two hours after peeling away from the crowded Forks High parking lot I was sliding the Volvo into a spot next to Carlisle's and listening carefully for his thoughts. Finding him, I slipped into the elevator, pressing the button for the top floor. Aro, Marcus, Caius, and Carlisle all had offices there, though the latter pair could most often be found over microscopes on the lower floors, and Marcus was rarely in the building at all. I had declined the offer of a space of my own, doing all of my work in Carlisle's lab on the occasions when I was called on to assist.

_Come right in, Edward. _The thought met me as the doors slid open and I followed it down the hallway, my feet making no sound on the thick, pale carpet that matched the walls and framed prints hanging from them. Knowing how much time he would spend here, Esme had decorated the entire tower in the same muted tones she preferred for our homes, her concern for Carlisle's comfort always paramount in her mind.

He looked up from a stack of papers on his desk as I opened the thick oak door, greeting me with a smile, though his thoughts were troubled flashes. _Thank you for coming, Edward. There's something I need to tell you._

"Of course." I nodded. "Is there a problem with the formula? Some way I can help?"

_No. _More worry tinged the jumble in his mind. _I am trusting you with this knowledge and, in making the decision to tell you, trusting Alice as well. It is my hope that you can both understand the need for discretion._

I moved to sit in one of the chairs on the other side of the expanse of wood, feeling alarmed myself. Carlisle was usually so calm; very rarely had I ever seen in him the distress that was so evident now. "Anything, naturally. What is it?"

He looked at his hands before meeting my eyes again. _Aro. He has killed a human._

* * *

End notes:

Well, we'd love to hear your thoughts. :) We actually have chapters in reserve and will be posting once a week.


	2. Conversations and Betrayal

_AN:_

_We don't own Twilight. SM owns all but the plot._

_Before anything else, thanks must go to the usual suspects: karentwilighted and ladyrip for being our amazing and generous betas, LaraIsAwkward for keeping a third pair of eyes on the science - or second, really, since mine are useless on that front - and ilsuocantante for prereading and making astute, intelligent comments. Also to the rest of the LoD for reading, encouraging, making us laugh, and general fuckawesomeness._

_To answer a question that came up in a review, the "drug" only works if vampire venom is mixed with the blood of the species it is intended to affect. Therefore, a formula made with human blood wouldn't make a difference to the taste of animals who might come into contact with it via the water supply or any other means._

_Though the original plan was to alternate POVs from the start, the fic just wouldn't work that way. Thus, you get a second EPOV chapter before hearing from Bella, but believe me, you'll want to stay tuned for her. Ali's Bella is really something._

* * *

EPOV

The screeching of my tires was a sigh of relief as I peeled out of the Forks High parking lot for the last time until September, and possibly for the final time ever. I was seriously considering convincing Carlisle that I should not have to return, that I should fake some long-term illness or spread around the story of a transfer to another school and spend the next few years in the lab instead.

I simply couldn't face returning here.

Alice shot me an admonishing look from the passenger seat. _Calm down, speed demon, _she thought. _We're all happy to be out for the summer, but people are staring._

As if I wasn't used to _that._

Heading toward home, it was suddenly not enough to be escaping the small cluster of buildings gathered beside the highway. Perhaps I would go to Denali for a while, visit with our friends there and enjoy hunting the plentiful big game to be found roaming the tundra. Tanya could be...bothersome, it was true, but discounting her unwillingness to accept defeat in the challenge of my seduction, she was at least intelligent, well-spoken company, as were the rest of her coven. Not that my family wasn't, but I desired a change of scenery.

And three of the five in Denali were unmated. Only Carmen and Eleazar would be reminders of what I did not have. Would never have, I was sure.

Images of myself in Alaska flickered briefly through Alice's mind before she gave a satisfied nod. _Good plan. Do you want any of us to come with you?_

I blinked twice, code in our silent conversations for _no. _

_Okay. You're going today?_

Blink.  
_  
Carlisle's working at the hospital this afternoon. Drop us off and go and say goodbye to him. _She knew I would want to do that in person; I always did. _I'll have a bag packed for you by the time you get back._

I smiled, seeing her take it as the thanks I intended.

My brothers and sisters slipped out of the car at the bottom of our long driveway, barely clear of the doors before I turned the Volvo sharply and aimed it back in the direction of Forks. A daily commute to Seattle could not be adequately explained to the citizens of Forks, and so Carlisle worked part-time in the tiny emergency room here, treating injuries not severe enough to warrant transport to a larger hospital elsewhere. It was a mark of his compassion and of his dedication to all branches of his profession that Carlisle did not see this as beneath his brilliance; to him, a broken wrist was literally as serious as a heart attack - or protecting the human race from our kind - because he abhorred suffering in any form.

"Good afternoon, Edward," greeted a familiar woman in polka-dotted scrubs from behind the nurse's station. She smiled brightly, but her thoughts were decidedly less innocent than her expression. _Just as gorgeous as Dr. Cullen. I wonder if what they say about boys of his age being at their sexual peak is true. Lord knows I'm at mine..._

I suppressed a shudder, fighting to respond only to that which she had spoken aloud. "Hello, Laura. Is my father around? I need to speak with him." Of course, I knew precisely where to find Carlisle, but ignoring the nurse and going straight to the right cubicle would have been both suspicious and rude.

"Finishing up with a patient, but you're welcome to wait in his office," she said, pointing to the door across the room. She sighed quietly before her thoughts brightened at the idea that she would get to see me walk away from her.

"Thank you," I said politely, if a little coolly. There was no reason to encourage her any more than her imagination already was.

_Edward? I'll be right there, _Carlisle thought, his ears having easily caught the conversation. I busied myself studying the paintings on his office walls, priceless originals carefully framed in cheap, nondescript wood so as to look like prints.

There was so much pretense in our lives.

_Is everything all right? _Carlisle asked moments later, entering and closing the door behind him.

"I was thinking of going to Denali for a while. That is, if you don't need me in Seattle?"

_It might be good for you to get away. _I smiled, thinking that he said this every time I needed respite from my happy family. _And no, Caius and I have things perfectly under control at the lab._

"How is Aro?" My voice softened as I thought of the ancient vampire and the guilt he must still be feeling. I had not seen him since that afternoon months earlier when Carlisle had told me what Aro had done and could only imagine the difficulties involved in recovering from such a mistake. Aro had gone nearly a thousand years without tasting human blood, and to slip the way he had...

I was actually grateful for the fact that we hadn't run into each other...had visited the lab much less than usual in order to ensure it. Looking into his mind, experiencing the flavor of the human's blood through his recollections... That had been difficult enough when I'd spoken with the outcasts while collecting venom, and they were accustomed to the taste. Blood tempting enough to have broken Aro's resolve after centuries of restraint...? No, it was better that I be spared that particular insight.

Carlisle frowned, putting his hands in the pockets of his white coat. Human gestures were so natural for him. _I wish I knew, but he will not speak to me about it. After it happened he was devastated, fearful that I would insist he leave the project, or make public what he had done._

My father was far too fair-minded and understanding to ever do such things, but I grasped that Aro had not been in his right mind at the time.

_At any rate, _he continued, _when I ask, he insists that he is coping well, and that his control is even stronger than before. I can do nothing but take my friend at his word._

"Send him my regards, please. I will visit the lab as soon as I get back to see how things are coming along."

_Of course. Enjoy your trip, Edward.  
_

~*~

Esme always hated to see me go; it hurt her more than if the others left. She reasoned that if my siblings took holidays they were at least with their mates, never truly leaving home because they took the connection to family with them. Nevertheless, she kissed me and wished me a good time, accepting my promise that I would return soon. True to her word, Alice had gathered everything I would need for my time away, negating the need to linger for more time than it took to say goodbye.

I drove through rain that did not hinder my vision, feeling as if it were washing away my human disguise. The cabin in Alaska was remote; I could lay in the sun if I wished and let it warm my skin...and I wouldn't have to pretend to those around me that I couldn't hear their every thought, as I was forced to do at school. At the Canadian border I gave a cursory glance to the card I took from the glove compartment before handing it to the guard, checking which name was on the driver's license I had pulled from the stack I kept there.

It seemed fitting to not know who I was supposed to be.

Stopping only for gas, I drove through the night and the following morning, the house in Denali coming into view as the sun crested overhead. Thoughts pushed against the edges of my mind - curiosity at the sound of an unexpected engine, pleasure as they recognized my scent - and then faces came into view, Irina and Kate stepping out onto the porch to watch my approach.

"Well, Edward! This is a pleasant surprise. You didn't let us know you were coming," Irina said with a smile as my feet met hard earth.

"Spur of the moment decision." I grinned, stepping up to the porch to kiss their cheeks. "You aren't happy to see me?"

"Silly boy, of course we are," Kate chided. "Just surprised; we thought things in Seattle would have kept your attention."

I shrugged. "They can manage without me." _And I do not want to see Aro again until the drug is perfected and humans smell terrible to me. I am hoping that will offset tasting the blood of the human he killed when I read his thoughts. But you can't know about that._

Kate studied my face for a moment, wondering if there were more to the story. I kept my expression impassive until she nodded, gesturing to the door. "Come inside. The others are hunting but should return shortly. They will be pleased to see you, too." There was a glint of humor in her bright golden eyes, and I stifled a groan. I knew how Tanya would react to my presence.

But I had dealt with it before, and would again. While I would never deny that Tanya was a stunning woman, with her ice-white skin and strawberry blonde curls, she was not for me...and she did not want to be, not in the way for which I yearned in secret moments. To her I would be nothing more than an amusement, a conquest.

It wouldn't be love.

The problem was that I had, one way or another, met most females of our kind in existence and none of them had stirred me. Already fairly close-knit and able to live in close proximity to one another due to the gentling effects of our animal diets, much of the vampire community had come together in support of the research being done at the lab. Chances were small that my perfect mate was out there somewhere, just waiting for me.

Shaking off my abrupt melancholy, I followed the sisters into the house, taking in the familiar expanses of gleaming wood and soft fabric. We had lived here with the Denali coven decades earlier; it was a place that still felt like a home to me.

At Irina's request that I fill her in on the happenings with the lab and my family, we sat, falling easily into discussion. They, too, were heavily invested in our research, both financially and emotionally, though they were happy to leave the actual science to those of us with the interest and necessary training. Carlisle naturally kept them apprised of major developments, but there was always information to share. We were learning more every day.

I detailed the final stages of animal testing, explaining that we were now in transition to human trials, including deciding on a locale for the initial exposure and how to go about that, as the formula was effective when administered by various methods. Injection had been ruled out as a practical solution; it would simply take too long to reach a large number of people via that method. Caius was still in favor of an airborne medium, Carlisle arguing for insertion into water supplies. There were pros and cons to both, and we accepted that however distribution was managed, once would not be enough. New humans were constantly being born, and though we had not tested it, we were reasonably certain that the drug's effects would not be passed from mother to fetus.

But we were immortal...and thus had all the time we needed to repeatedly dose the human race as often as necessary.

Tanya, Carmen, and Eleazar appeared at the house as I was explaining that, once ready for mass consumption, the formula would first be used in areas inhabited by vampires, ensuring safety to those at the most immediate risk. The new arrivals listened carefully, not speaking until I was finished, and my concentration on the topic enabled me to ignore - or attempt to - the images running steadily through Tanya's mind.

"It is lovely to see you, Edward," Carmen said, faint traces of an accent from her human birthplace tinging her voice even now, centuries later. "To what do we owe the honor?"

"Just a vacation. Isn't that what high school students are supposed to do during the summer?"

Eleazar laughed, a deep, rich sound. "Indeed it is. I don't need to tell you that you are welcome for as long as you wish to stay. Our home is yours, Edward."

I caught Tanya's eyes, bright from her recent hunt and the thrill of getting another chance at me. She knew I could see her thoughts and grinned, unperturbed when I shook my head minutely. It wouldn't be enough for the duration of my time here, but it was enough to let her know that my mind remained unchanged.

~*~

Alaska was beautiful, in scenery and in the sense of peace I got from its wide sky and untouched landscapes. At once I felt insignificant and part of something large, important. There were no humans for miles, but it was here I felt the coexistence for which we strove, as connected to the earth as they were, as essential to its progress.

For weeks I indulged myself, warming my skin in the sun and playing baseball in violent summer storms with the others, laughing into the thunder when I easily outran them.

I missed my family, but was happy to have the opportunity to do so, and for the reminder that I was luckier than most, with a large family I loved, and who loved me. Carlisle and Alice called regularly, the former to check in and keep me apprised of the situation in Seattle, the latter simply to talk. There was always some trivial reason, but I understood the deeper meaning. With our similar talents came a deep bond of understanding, and I was thankful for the day she and Jasper had arrived on our doorstep, alleviating much of my loneliness.

Even if she _had_ claimed my room for herself, insisting it had the best view.

I replayed the memory fondly, looking out at the tundra visible beyond the windows of my room here, watching the play of clouds and August sunshine on the vast tundra. Tanya's thoughts preceded her, and so I was expecting the knock when it came, permission to enter already leaving my lips. We had performed this dance every few days since my arrival; apparently the time had come for the next few steps.

_How are you, Edward? Do you have everything you need? _

"Tanya." I nodded, keeping my eyes trained on her face, studiously ignoring the clinging dress she wore. "You have all taken good care of me, thank you."

_You know that I could take care of you in other ways, _she thought, closing the door behind her with a soft click. _You are both too young and too old to be so very alone._

One side of my mouth lifted into a half-smile. "Thank you for that, too."

_Oh, you know what I mean._

Yes, I did. "I'm sorry, Tanya. You know what I want, and you know it's the one thing you cannot give me."

_But there are so many other things, Edward. _She closed her eyes, concentrating on images she wished to show me. Pictures of us together in various ways, drawing pleasure on each other's skin.

"Please, that's enough." My voice was sharper than I had intended, and her shoulders stiffened as she opened her eyes. I expected to see anger at my rejection there, and in her mind, but instead there was sadness.

_Do you ever wonder that it might be impossible? That you are waiting for something that doesn't exist?_

"Constantly. Do you?"

_All the time. Then why not do what I do, and take what you _can _have? If not with me, then surely there is some female out there you find attractive? And clever enough, if it is conversation you desire as well?_

My mood toward her softened. "It has never been a question of your beauty, Tanya, or your intelligence, or your charm. You have all three in abundance."

She acknowledged the compliment with a small smile before nodding sadly. _Do me a favor, Edward?_

"Anything."

_When your heart tells you that you've found what you're looking for, listen to it. And remember something you already seem to know._

I waited.

_You won't find it here._

I left Denali that day.

~*~

Carlisle answered on the first ring, sounding relieved at the news that I was headed back to Washington. His request that I go directly to the lab made me wonder if there were some problem with the formula, but he would say no more on the phone. I hoped - was sure, in fact - that if anything had occurred it must only be a minor setback; we had come too far and discovered too much to fail now.

Words of Emmett's came back to me as my car flew through the night, his comment on being pioneers of our kind. What would be the next thing for us to discover? With humans - the majority, at least, and perhaps with enough time every last one - safe from us, what goal would take its place on the horizon? I knew Carlisle better than to believe this would be the end, that our painstakingly built lab would be left to crumble. No, he would never stop wanting to learn more, help ourselves and humans live to the fullest possible extent.

I reaffirmed my decision to leave school and assist him full-time. Surely with the experiments at such a crucial stage Carlisle would agree that my mind could be put to better use than the purgatory of high school, doing memorized equations like a trained monkey and studying historical events through which I had lived.

There were two cars parked in the underground lot when I entered: Carlisle's, and one I recognized as belonging to Marcus. I found it odd that he was here - it was a rarity; of the three brothers he was the one least interested in what we were doing here. In truth, he was the least interested in _anything_, a state of mind for which Carlisle held the death of Marcus' mate in a battle with the outcasts responsible.

Though I almost couldn't imagine it, I felt great sympathy for him.

Once more I cast my mind up through the building in search of my father's quiet mental voice, finding it on the tenth floor as he noted the changes to a smear of blood on a slide.

But that was not the only blood I saw. I staggered back, reeling as my senses were overcome. Taste. Smell unhindered by skin. A rich, deep flavor I had never before experienced but desperately wanted flowing over my tongue, soothing the sudden burning ache in my throat. I would do _anything _for it, kill and bite and drink down in long swallows, leaving bodies carelessly strewn at my feet. And I saw the bodies, none quite as satisfying as the first, but a delicious, illicit thrill nonetheless, the spice on my tongue worth the time spent in secret shadows.

It was comparing wine to water, this blood and that of animals. Small doses in test tubes had always been manageable, or seeing the inured thoughts of the outcasts, but not this...not knowing how it would dance and spark on my tastebuds, setting alight every nerve after a lifetime of deprivation.

_"Carlisle,"_ I gasped through the fiery thirst. _"Help me."_

Dimly I registered feet skimming over stairs as I fell to my knees, my fists clenched and pounding, cracks forming veins in the cement.

_Veins. No. NO._

Arms came around my shoulders in comfort and restraint, my father's voice in my ear, speaking aloud to cut through my spinning thoughts. "Fight it, Edward. _Fight it. _They are only thoughts, nothing more. Remember who you are...remember what we do here."

I drew in long, shuddering breaths, trying valiantly to think of something - anything - else. Alice. Esme. The meadow near our home in Forks where I went to read on days when sunlight there made me feel as if I were swimming in a bowl of liquid gold. "All right," I managed hoarsely, sitting back on my heels. My shoulders shook, but Carlisle held on.

"Aro is here." There was no need for a question.

_Yes. I am sorry, Edward. I heard the car arrive, but assumed it was Marcus. I am aware you have been avoiding Aro for this very reason._

"I didn't know if I could handle it. It is so strong in his thoughts...the blood..."

_Do you want to leave? I will come with you._

"No." I shook my head as I straightened and stood. "The damage is done. But, Carlisle... He's been lying to you...to all of us. After that first one, he never stopped."

It was the first time in eighty-seven years that I had ever seen him truly shocked. Calm acceptance had always gone hand-in-hand with his boundless compassion, and he had seen the world change so much in his time upon it that nothing bestowed more than the faintest hint of surprise. Amber eyes widened, and his mind went briefly, completely blank before racing through a thousand thoughts. Aro spending less time at the lab, particularly at night... His reluctance to confide in his friend about the original death... The fact that Aro and I had not been in close proximity for months perhaps just as much to do with him as with me.

Carlisle had thought it was all simply guilt.

My phone buzzed in my pocket; checking it was a reflexive movement, my suspicions confirmed when I saw Alice's name on the display. Carlisle's glance flicked to the screen and back to me, one unspoken question at the forefront of a tangle of others: why had she not seen what was happening?

"Respect, probably," I told him as I silenced the device in my hand. "The Volturi are still who we look to for leadership, Carlisle, and she would not have had a reason to invade their privacy. Rarely does Alice intentionally look into any of our futures without justification or request, and those visions that come to her unbidden are random and often unclear. Being Alice, she will almost certainly blame herself for _not _having been able to tell you, but she is not infallible."

_As much as she might like to think she is, _he thought, smiling for the first time. _All right. I must go and speak to him. Will you go up to my lab and wait for me?_

"Are you sure you don't want me there?" I asked, though I could already see his intentions.

Carlisle shook his head firmly, resignation setting his features into a mask. _No. This I must do alone._

We exchanged a long look and I nodded, my father's shocked and saddened face remaining in my mind as I pushed open the door to the stairs, leaving Carlisle to use the slow climb of the elevator to gather himself - prepare for what was sure to be a difficult confrontation. I refocused my thoughts on happy memories of my family and the things in which I found comfort in order to block out both Aro and Carlisle, though for very different reasons. I had no desire to experience any more of Aro's overpowering recollections, and if Carlisle had wanted me to know what he planned to say to his old friend, he would have asked me to be there.

Often, the offer of privacy to those around me was impossible, but I did it when I could.

Nevertheless, I was curious as to how my father would manage the situation. It was simply not in his nature to yell or accuse, but it could not be argued that Aro was going against everything the vampire community stood for, not to mention the purpose of the research to which he had appeared to be so dedicated. Perhaps worst of all, in killing humans - however carefully or descreetly - in the area we inhabited, Aro was putting all of us at risk. At any other time, or under different circumstances, we might simply have been able to move, but it would take years to set up another lab somewhere else, even allowing for the possibility of taking our equipment with us.

I reached the tenth floor and stepped into a room of sterile white: Carlisle's private lab. He and Caius each had one, smaller than the ones used in groups by the other vampires who had come to work here, but still stocked with all of the necessary tools for our experiments. Curiosity attempted to inch my feet toward the microscope at which I knew Carlisle had been when I'd been forced to plea desperately for his assistance, but I resisted.

It was, I thought, not a particularly good idea for me to place my nose a few inches from a blood sample so soon after being overwhelmed.

Instead, I moved to a long table at the far end of the room, its surface stacked neatly with files. Columns of numbers and colorful graphs met my eye, the evidence of scientific study. Margins held notes in Carlisle's elegant hand, and I found it amusing - for the thousandth time - that he left such reminders to himself when it was physically impossible for him to forget even the smallest detail.

Voices fell through the ceiling, forcing me to redouble my efforts to tune out the conversation I should not hear. It was, however, impossible not to think about, even as I flicked through the stacks of data, all that we had learned reduced to paper and ink. I was sure - as anyone who knew Carlisle would be - that he would hear out Aro's explanation, if indeed the ancient vampire had one to give, but with Carlisle's abject shock at the news I had given him came my own uncertainties as to what he would do after that point. What I had said to him in the parking lot was beyond dispute; we _did _all respect the Volturi and look to them for guidance. Would that play into the reaction Carlisle allowed Aro to see?

And if Carlisle allowed Aro to touch him, what would his friend find that had not been spoken aloud?

I had no answers, but my musings did, at the very least, keep me occupied with my own thoughts. Early on in my immortality I had discovered that I was far more likely to delve into the heads of others if I was bored.

Which was likely why it was so much more difficult to turn it off at school, I thought wryly. The one place where I wished for silence the most.

My body turned instinctively at the sound of an opening door; though we lived in peaceful times, the inherent need to protect oneself remained. Carlisle looked...defeated, and if I had not known it was as impossible for him as it was for the rest of our kind, I would have said that he looked tired enough to fall asleep where he stood.

"They are leaving," he said quietly. "Aro has no desire to return to a life of animal blood; his brothers will go with him. They would rather abandon our research than their brotherhood, though for Caius especially it is clearly a painful choice."

_"Carlisle," _I whispered. "What _happens _now? To us? To this?"

He stared at the floor for a moment before meeting my gaze, his own strong and determined. "As equal partners, they will take their share of the research. We have enough to continue without them, though it will require more time, and I will require more of your assistance." He knew that there was no need to ask. "As for us... Edward, I believe in the way we live our lives. I believe it is right. That Aro is my friend does not mean I will blindly follow where he leads; there is absolutely nothing that could force me into a diet of humans. There will, almost without doubt, be some who revert to the old ways because Aro has, and because they view the Volturi as the model by which we should all live. But I will not be one of them, and I am hoping that you and the rest of our family feel as I do."

"I'm sure we all do," I told him. "So that's it? Twenty years of work just gets divided up, and they get to do with it whatever they wish?" It wouldn't be put to its intended purpose, I was sure. Aro would have no motivation anymore for what we had been trying to accomplish here.

"That is what is fair, Edward. I know it does not seem so now, but Caius in particular has had as much to do with our success thus far as myself or anyone else, and I will not punish him for his brother's decisions, nor will I fault him for wanting to keep his family together. It is exactly what I would do."

"Even if one of us drank from a human?"

He nodded. "Even then."

~*~

We left Seattle in my car a few moments later, Carlisle in need of Esme and my eyes aching with the strain of keeping Aro's thoughts out of my head. I worried about the wisdom of leaving him alone in the lab, but Carlisle insisted that Aro could be trusted. I had my doubts, but did not voice them, speaking instead to suggest that I drive us home and back to the lab in the morning.

Accustomed as I was to a comfortable existence, to a family who surrounded me with love and endured my frequent bouts of bitter loneliness, I felt as shaken as Carlisle by the night's events. It was a devastating wake-up call to all of us that even large, important pieces of information could escape both Alice's and my notice, and that even in our immortality, nothing was guaranteed to be permanent.

Glancing at Carlisle, still and outwardly silent in the passenger seat, it struck me that we were most like the humans who surrounded us in times of strong emotion.

In the park on the outskirts of Forks we stopped to hunt a few deer, my throat still burning with delicious memories. Footsteps grew quieter as I bared my teeth to the neck of the first, returning again after I had set the carcass of the third on the forest floor.

He looked better, a brightness to his eyes not solely caused by blood, and I saw in his thoughts that hunting as we had served as a reminder of who we were, just as Carlisle had instructed me to remember when Aro's memories had threatened to unravel my control. He smiled, an understanding that did not need words - and was too deep for them - passing between us.

"I am sorry, Carlisle," I said because I hadn't yet. "I know he was - is - your friend."

_Thank you, Edward. I cannot pretend that I am not disappointed, but we all make the choices we need to. I have a great deal of hope that this is only temporary, and Aro will once again decide on a gentler way of life. Until that time, I can only wish him well. I have a family and a goal that require me __to devote __my time to those things I am able to change; to focus on those ways in which I - we - are able to make a real difference in the world. And on that note, the others are waiting for us, and you never returned Alice's call; she will likely have words for you on that score._

He was right. Alice was waiting for us as we pulled up to the house, arms crossed in petulance and already silently berating me. I held up my hands in a gesture of peace before she really got started, stepping out of the car and moving to her side. "We were busy, Alice. I'm sorry."

She sighed. "I know. Carlisle, I-"

The words were clear in her mind, but Carlisle could read them just as easily on her face. "No, Alice. Aro would have found a way around your sight even if you had been looking, and I am certain he assumed that you would not. We must all move forward from this, all right?"

In answer she stepped forward and hugged him swiftly, nodding before she spoke. "Esme's inside. The rest of us are going to go out into the woods. You and Edward are leaving for Seattle at six-thirty; he'll be back by then."

I rolled my eyes good-naturedly at her and she grinned. Sometimes living with Alice was like having a tiny drill sergeant in the house...one who wore Chanel-designed fatigues.

Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett were waiting for us in a clearing a few miles from the house, sitting on the grass and leaning against boulders. They looked up at our approach, curiosity on their faces that told me Alice hadn't given them all the details. I sat and filled them in, though there were gaps in what I could say, given that I had not witnessed the final conversation between Carlisle and Aro. Predictable surprise followed my story; they all began talking at once as I leaned back against a large rock, raising my eyes to watch clouds move across the sky.

Everything had to keep moving.

"So, what now?" Jasper echoed my own question to Carlisle in the lab.

"Now we don't let this stop us. Carlisle and I are perfectly capable of continuing the testing ourselves, and there are others to help at the lab. I won't be returning to school with the rest of you this year," I said, a trace of smugness in my tone, knowing they despised the tedium nearly as much as I did.

A gasp broke the air; it was enough to pull my eyes from above and train them on Alice. "No, Edward, you can't! You have to come back with us!" She sounded panicked, and her reaction took me aback.

"Really, Alice. I know it means you will be the only junior out of us, but that's never mattered to you before." We had all played various ages at one time or another, though it was true that she and I usually chose to stick together.

_It's not that, Edward, _she thought urgently, falling back into our usual habits even though others were with us. _I was going to tell you..._

I raised my eyebrows - our signal for _what?_

"Stop that, you two," grumbled Emmett. "I can see you doing your freaky mental-talky thing again. Share with the rest of the class."

His choice of words made me laugh. "Alice seems to think I need to go to school this year. What is it? Has some war nobody knew about been discovered and I need to sit through History...again?" I asked, directing my question at her. In contrast to my own smirk, her face was drawn and serious.

"I saw...I don't know what it was...a few days ago. I was waiting until you got home to tell you. It's all fuzzy...just flashes...but _something _important is going to happen this year, and you need to be there for it."


	3. The Twilight Zone

_We don't own Twilight - SM owns everything but the plot. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Before anything else, thanks must go to the usual suspects: karentwilighted and ladyrip for being our amazing and generous betas, LaraIsAwkward for keeping a third pair of eyes on the science, and ilsuocantante for prereading blind and not complaining because we won't explain our devious plans. Kisses to the LoD girls for listening to Em and me ramble on about this thing all the time._

_So, after two chapters of scrumptious veggie-scientist Edward, we finally get to meet his girl. Let me tell you, making canon Bella more likable is a tough task...I hope I got it right. Here she is, your Miss America...and I hope I'm doing Em's Edward justice._

* * *

**Chapter 3: The Twilight Zone**

**Bella:**

I looked terrible in yellow.

I knew it, the pastor knew it, everyone in the rickety white seats knew it ― hell, even _Phil _knew it, and he was a typical oblivious guy. Everyone but my mother, that is. I didn't really mind ― after all, wasn't it sort of the Maid of Honor's job to look worse than the bride? At least the sleeveless sheath style of the dress flattered my figure. I actually would have worn it again, if the bright, sunny color hadn't made me look as if I was one of the undead.

Phil gave me a soft, apologetic smile as I followed my mother's last bridesmaid, crazy cousin Sally and her giant, obnoxious feathered hair comb down the aisle to take my place just below the makeshift altar. The minister blessed me with a beatific smile, which I politely returned, before turning to show my washed-out face to the modest-sized congregation assembled to witness the nuptials of Renee Swan and Phil Dwyer, minor league ball-player extraordinaire.

My mother, bless her heart, had wanted an outdoor wedding, and who was I to put a damper on the bride-to-be's wishes? So there I stood, my bare feet making divots in the sand-colored strip of carpet where the wedding party stood. Despite my two coats of SPF 60 sunblock, I could feel the hot desert sun beating down on my face and bare shoulders, trying to tan skin that was never meant to spend copious amounts of time in the sun.

I knew I should have insisted on one of those huge, floppy Easter Hats, the kind that ladies always wore to the Kentucky Derby. I already looked like an overgrown participant in one of those beauty pageants for little girls due to my mother's overzealous touch with the eye makeup, so a giant hat couldn't make me look any worse. Plus, I _really_ needed the shade.

Then again, maybe a little sunburn would do me good. It would add a little color to my face.

_"Always look on the bright side of life..."_

I guessed not even Monty Python was funny when you were baking in the desert sun. It wasn't supposed to be this hot in the beginning of November!

Stifling a sigh, I looked around surreptitiously, only half-listening to the ceremony. I caught a glimpse of Sally's feather contraption and was suddenly reminded of the Dead Parrot sketches. A hiccup of laughter escaped me, but thankfully, no one noticed. I was wrong. Monty Python was _always_ funny.

Maybe that was one of the reasons I had so few friends. People my age rarely watched Monty Python, and it was even rarer that they got the humor. It wasn't comedy fodder for your average seventeen-year-old, that was certain.

Then there was my pale complexion and brown hair. I stood out like a sore thumb among my peers, who all seemed to be genetic descendants of Barbie and Ken and had the intellects to match. My high school was the equivalent of suburbia; perfect boys and girls built from the same model with customized changes, just like the new house Phil and Mom had built a few months ago.

I flew under the radar, and that was just the way I liked it. I stayed out of everyone's way, got good grades, and didn't complain ― out loud, anyway. The stand-up comedian in my brain had quite a few opinions, and most of them were sort of offensive.

"Bella?"

I was snapped out of my wandering thoughts by the anxious whisper of my mother, who was trying to hand me her bouquet.

Great. I'd missed watching her walk down the aisle. Oh, well...that was what wedding pictures were for, right? Taking her bouquet, I gave Renee my "good daughter" smile, and everything was fine again. The stingy desert breeze decided to bless me with a puff of air at that moment, cooling the sweat that was misting on the back of my neck. I had to fight the urge to fan myself with both the bouquets I held in an effort to reproduce the feeling.

Soon, it was time for the rings. I awkwardly looked for a place to set my mother's bouquet, so I could untie Phil's ring from the ribbon that hung from my smaller cluster of blooms. _Stupid flowers, _I thought. Bouquets really weren't that romantic when you stopped to think about their origins. Back in the Middle Ages, brides carried them to offset their body odor, since most people only bathed _once a year_. Disgusting. Finally deciding to hold the other bouquet between my knees, I located the end of the ribbon, only to realize there was no ring attached. _No. Ring._

Holy. Fucking. Crow.

Yeah, there was an F-bomb in there. I was in a whole lot of trouble, and this situation definitely deserved a little cursing. My knees weakened, sending my mother's very expensive flowers dropping to the ground with a thud. A few petals blew away like tumbleweeds in slow motion. _Crap!_

"Um, I'm sure it just fell off the ribbon right here," I mumbled, gently righting Renee's flowers at the side of the carpet and laying mine beside them as I dropped to my knees to look for the ring. Not seeing any glinting, practical titanium (what Phil had insisted upon, because it was one of the strongest metals, and that was _manly)_, I glanced up at my mother's frozen face.

_If it went in the sand, I'm screwed._

"What do you mean, it fell off?!" Renee hissed, looking around her feet with an interesting combination of shock and rage. At that point, I was pretty sure she was regretting the "no spanking" method of discipline she'd used on me as a child. Every hair on my body stood on end as she glared at me, telling me with her eyes that if I didn't find that ring, I wouldn't live to see eighteen.

I really, _really_ wanted to see eighteen. I'd been acting like an adult for so long, I wondered if it would feel different to actually _be_ one.

Concentrating on the sand just at the back edge of the carpet, I sifted lightly through the sand, very aware that I was on my hands and knees in front of one hundred or so guests. I was practically mooning them...except my rear was clothed.

"I'll find it, Mom, don't worry!" I whispered through clenched teeth, becoming more and more certain I was going to get the "mommy-dearest" treatment of a lifetime if I'd lost the ring. I couldn't tell if my face was turning red or not, because of my potential sunburn. Finally, something hot scorched my palm, and I'd never been happier to receive an injury.

"Got it!" Sighing in relief, I grabbed up the nearly molten titanium, blowing a quick breath over the ring to clear away any sand. That's when the stupid breeze decided to blow again, sending a few grains of sand into my right eye. _This just keeps getting better and better. Now I have to spend the rest of the ceremony up here squinting like One-Eyed Willie._

Renee's relief was palpable as I handed over the ring with an apologetic smile and a tiny sniff; the sand was making my eye water. I spent a good ten minutes trying not to conspicuously wipe at my irritated eye. In fact, it was still watering when I signed the marriage certificate, placing my messy scrawl right next to the space for Phil's best man, creepy mustache Johnny. _Someone should really tell him the Magnum, P.I. look went out a long time ago._

Eventually, the sand made its way out of my eye, leaving it red and puffy. I did make it through the rest of the festivities with no more mishaps, aside from nearly losing it when my mother gushed about how touching it was that I'd cried during the ceremony. I gave my silly little speech, and since the bride wouldn't let me off the hook ― I loved her too much to disappoint her - I played the dutiful daughter, as ever.

That was me. Dutiful. Responsible. Boring.

Middle aged at seventeen. I'd have to start shopping for a stupid casket when I turned thirty. Sometimes I caught myself daydreaming about a more exciting life. Rather morosely, I often found myself asking, _Is this it?_ Because, really, most of the time my life was the equivalent of a giant dose of horse tranquilizer.

And that was the crux of my issues, wasn't it? I wanted to be Sydney Bristow when I was really Lydia Deetz. "_I, myself, am...strange and unusual._"

And I really couldn't even claim that, in all truth. I was just a normal girl, even if I was a little shy, and in turn, on the quiet side. Renee was convinced it was social anxiety; after all, I was perfectly fine with my mom and Phil. Crowds weren't exactly my favorite thing, but I tolerated them. It was just hard to be myself when I wasn't exactly sure how I'd be received. And that was pretty normal...right?

I was pretty happy to spend my time with Mom and Phil, hanging out at the house or, on cooler days, underneath the shade of the only mature tree in the new subdivision. Put me alone in a room with some good music, books or movies, and I was in heaven. We found our routine very comfortable, even if Renee did encourage me to make more friends my own age.

I couldn't help but feel just a tiny bit sad about how my mother described our relationship. She was my best friend, yes, but she was also my mom ― which meant something a little more to me. Sometimes it royally sucked, being the adult, especially when you were only seventeen. Was it selfish to want someone to take care of _me_ for a little while?

However, I considered my life a good one overall. My mom was happy with Phil, who was a really nice guy, and that made me happy. In the first couple months following the wedding, they were so cute together. Phil was perfect for Renee, and he wasn't too bad at the whole stepfather thing, either. He never tried to replace my father and listened when I needed to talk. I wished he'd been around when I was younger.

Thanksgiving came and went with little fanfare. I made dinner, as usual, and the three of us celebrated our new familial status by gorging ourselves on turkey, gravy, stuffing and pie. Lots and _lots_ of pie, since Renee decided she wanted to actually make something. Baking pies with my mother was fun but very messy. However, it was worth every clump of dough I cleaned off the floor and every single spill I wiped up. Dessert was delicious. Mom was a pretty good little baker. The little child in me that had longed for warm, homemade chocolate chip cookies and a cold glass of milk was a bit upset that she'd waited until now to play Suzy Homemaker, but she was easy to ignore when it was obvious my mom was trying.

It was freaking wonderful. Phil was the best stepfather _ever_. I was really enjoying the "Phil Effect," as I'd taken to calling it, until one mild December afternoon, shortly before school let out for winter break.

That Monday started off great, because Phil had given me his old car as an early Christmas present. It wasn't anything special, just an old Volvo station wagon that had seen better days ― lots of them. But it was a car, and therefore worth its weight in gold to a transportation-less teen like myself.

I pulled into the busy lot at school, parking next to a black sedan with black-tinted windows. As I passed the trunk, I eyed the silver cat symbol that screamed money. It was some type of Jaguar ― one I'd never seen before. Sleek and black, oozing with some kind of weird sex appeal, it didn't look like the typical long and boxy country-club mobile. _Jeez. _Someone's_ parents are rich. I wonder if they're new...I'd remember that car if I'd ever seen it before._

School was...school. Not very interesting. The most exciting part of my day was the new car in the parking lot.

I was eternally grateful for the open lunch period. That meant I could escape to the local taqueria with a few other students I often had lunch with. We weren't really great friends; we just banded together in mutual shyness. It worked for all of us. We were in a lot of the same classes, so we all had partners for projects and people who would lend us notes if we missed class. A nice, symbiotic relationship.

The Jaguar was still parked next to Phil's rusty Volvo when school was out.

"It's okay, girl," I murmured to the station wagon, patting the hood gently before I got in. "I hope sitting out here all day with the Daddy Warbucks of cars didn't give you a complex."

It was tempting to wait around until the owner came back; maybe pretend to read a book while scoping out the new kid. I didn't, of course, because that would be pretty rude, and I wouldn't like it very much if I were the one in their shoes. News of any new students would make its way to me eventually, if I was patient.

Taking my time on the drive home and enjoying my new-found mobility, I grabbed a coffee on the way back to help me power through the mountain of trig homework I had to finish. The garage door opener clipped to the visor refused to work, and I heaved myself out of the sagging seat to open the door myself. As I returned to the car to pull it inside, I saw another black sedan drive by, the speed neither too fast nor too slow, but I could have sworn it was the Jag from school.

That was ridiculous, of course. The neighborhood was nice, but not _that_ nice. I must have needed that caffeine more than I'd originally thought, if my eyes were playing tricks on me like that.

The rest of the week went much the same, only I was convinced that silly Jaguar was haunting me. It had been in the parking lot again on Tuesday but was gone when I got out of school, and it didn't return Wednesday morning. I thought that would be the end of it, but I started seeing it near my neighborhood when I was out. Chalking it up to my overactive imagination, I tried to ignore it and went about my week.

Thursday afternoon started out as heaven. Winter break was upon me, I had no homework, and finals were over. Christmas was coming, which meant gift cards for Amazon and iTunes, which equaled a happy Bella. I was looking forward to enjoying the mild December air in the back yard with my friend Jane Austen, no matter how dorky it sounded.

By the time I made it home, however, the sky had darkened with clouds ― thick, low Stratocumulus clouds that threatened rain for the first time in weeks. Of course, it _would_ rain on my first free afternoon when it'd been dry as a bone for months. There was something different in the air as I went to retrieve the mail: humidity. I didn't like it. Not one bit.

Mom was home when I finally made it inside, just as the skies opened with a startling crack of thunder.

"Wow!" I breathed, staring in awe at the downpour outside. Winter storms were rare, but not impossible, and it was raining harder than I'd ever seen before. It added a sort of electricity to the air, aside from the obvious lightning. Something new and exciting, at least if you were safe and cozy indoors. Walking to the sliding-glass door at the other side of the kitchen, I cracked it open to feel the misty breeze.

It was freezing. I immediately tugged the door shut and locked it tight.

Mom and I shared a blanket on the couch in the den, eating Reese's Pieces and watching _Queen of the Damned_. Renee was a sucker for vampire movies. I didn't mind...I sort of enjoyed seeing Stuart Townsend shirtless.

The storm lost its power eventually, but the rain didn't stop entirely. Phil came straggling in as the credits rolled, and Mom leapt off the couch to help him dry off. I immediately made myself scarce, claiming fatigue and escaping to my room for the night. As I got ready for bed, I discovered it wasn't really a lie, and I fell into bed with a blissful sigh.

~*~

I dreamt I was riding my bike.

It was a warm, sunny day, and I rode down the street on my new bike, fluorescent band-aids decorating my skinned seven-year-old knees. I was feeling a little daring as I reached the end of the block on our quiet little cul-de-sac, deciding Mommy would never know if I rode just a little bit past where she always told me to stop.

The breeze smelled of dusty sand, sunshine, and the smoky scent of barbecue grills wafting from suburban back yards. I rode three or four blocks over before conscience got the better of me and I turned back, heading for home, my little feet pedaling at a guilty pace.

Suddenly, the sun was gone, hidden behind ominous clouds tinged green with menace. I pedaled faster, cutting through yards and alleyways as fat, cold raindrops splattered against my exposed skin. Gusts of air whipped past my face, turning my long hair into soaked ropes that stung as they slapped against my cheeks at the mercy of the swirling wind. Hailstones the size of marbles pelted me, hitting against my fingers and toes, bringing tears to my eyes as my freezing limbs overreacted to the pain.

Someone called my name, the voice distorted by the wind and rain. It seemed to come from all directions, sounding neither male nor female, but resonating with an urgency that spurred me to go faster. Over grass, mud, and gravel I rode, likely leaving ruts in the neighbors' yards, but I didn't care about anything but getting home and into Mommy's warm arms. I didn't care if she made me stay in my room forever ― I just wanted my mom.

A loud crash broke through the cacophony of wind and water. Jerking my head around, I saw a huge tree lying directly across the path I'd just ridden. Without warning, my bike jerked, sending me flying over the handlebars. I landed in a mess of pebbles and mud, the impact knocking the breath from my chest.

In a full panic, I tried to suck in the air I so desperately needed, my vision going black at the edges as I struggled more and more for just one precious breath. Cold enveloped me, sending my stomach plummeting, and suddenly I was flying through the air again. I was exposed to the wind and rain once more, and pressed up against something that sucked every ounce of warmth from me.

"Mommy..." I managed to gasp, prying my eyes open, despite the crippling fear that held me frozen. Shimmering alabaster flashes intermingled with glimpses of cruel ruby and jet black as I blinked upward, fighting the blackness that was steadily increasing by the millisecond. Cold fingers dug into my limbs as the darkness engulfed me, a soft, chilling laugh following me under.

~*~

When I woke the next morning, I staunchly resolved to never eat candy within a few hours of going to bed again. Moms across the US were right; candy really _did _give you nightmares. Then again, I was sure the storm and the vampire movie didn't help either.

After shaking off the residual weirdness left by the the nightmare, I spent Friday morning at the library, thoroughly enjoying the peace and quiet and the shelves lined with books that surrounded me. I only left when someone else discovered the quiet little nook I'd claimed ― I was very serious about my library space. When my solitude was no more, I dog-eared my place before closing the worn copy of _Galapagos._ I felt a little guilty for folding the edges, but I couldn't find my bookmark. Gathering the stack of books and my backpack, I took them to the check-out counter, receiving a strange look from the guy at the desk as he eyed my selections.

I sighed softly, wondering what was so weird about a teenage girl reading Vonnegut. Oh, well...just another checkmark under the "strange" column for Bella Swan.

A very tall, dark-haired man was leaving the mailbox bank as I approached. I tried not to stare, I really did, but there was something about him that was eerily familiar. Pale skin, even paler than mine, stood out starkly in this sunny city, so I knew he couldn't have been living here long ― unless he was a pale freak like me. Shiny black hair fell over the expensive sunglasses that covered his eyes, but they were nothing unusual ― I'd neglected to take my own off after the sun had disappeared behind the cloud cover. He was gone when I turned back toward the house, and I forgot about him.

I tripped over the threshold when I came through the door from the garage, making my usual racket. Unlike yesterday, no one was home to greet me, but that was perfectly fine. Entertaining myself had always been a special talent of mine. During this time of day, Phil was usually at the gym or the training field, and Mom was at her class of the month ― this time, I think it was yoga.

I shuffled to the refrigerator and poured a glass of milk, as I was a firm believer in warding off Osteoporosis while I could ― my bones were breakable enough as it was. Though I generally disliked milk as a beverage unless cookies were involved, I made myself do it because it was the smart thing to do. Luck wasn't usually on my side, so I ate pretty healthily just to offset the injuries I received on a somewhat regular basis.

I pondered what to do first as I wandered absently to the family room, torn between an afternoon with Vonnegut in my room or a nice couch session between me and the television. I _was_ on break...who said I couldn't do both? Making a quick detour, I stopped by my bedroom to put on some comfy clothes and grab my iPod.

Adding the music was a very bad idea, in hindsight. A very, _very_ bad idea.

The sight that awaited me as I strolled innocently into the family room was something that no amount of therapy would ever cure ― seeing one's parents..._in flagrante delicto_.

That was the day I decided to move to Forks.

~*~

I didn't tell Renee at first. I didn't want her to feel bad...even though she had to know I'd be scarred for life. Charlie, my dad, was ecstatic when I asked if I could move in with him. Well, ecstatic for him... It had actually been more like "It will be good to see you, Bells. I'm looking forward to it."

Dad was my kind of person ― two hours later, I had a one-way ticket to Seattle and a room full of stuff to pack. He promised to enroll me in school the following Monday, providing the move was okay with my mother. I had one major thing left on my checklist ― telling Renee. Phil already knew, and he had promised to back me up if my mom got too upset.

"Mom, you and Phil need some time by yourselves," I explained, looking away for a second as I tried to fight the blush that crept into my face at the indirect reference. _Okay, so far, this isn't going well._ "Charlie's up there all alone, and I'd like to spend some time with him before I go to college." _There, that's better!_

"He's your father, Bella, don't call him Charlie," was the first thing she said. I waited for the rest to sink in, but only a small frown crossed her face before she seemed to relax. "I think that's a very nice idea. Phil and I will miss you, of course, but it will do you good to get to know your father."

"Yeah, Bella. I think it would be good for you," Phil agreed with a cheesy, conspiratorial wink.

I gaped at Renee in shock, having to remind myself to close my mouth. _Huh. _That certainly wasn't what I'd been expecting. Was I in the Twilight Zone? I'd expected a little more protest than this. A petty little part of me was a bit miffed, but I was getting what I wanted and wouldn't complain. Since she was being so agreeable, I decided to test out her new-found permissiveness.

"Do you think I could drive? You know, since I just got the station wagon, and I could fit everything inside," I chattered, starting to get my hopes up that they'd actually let me do it. "Then we wouldn't have to pay to have my things shipped to Forks."

Phil and Renee frowned as a unit, which I would have thought was really cute, if it hadn't been directed at me.

"I don't know, Bella," Phil started, rubbing his chin as he thought for a moment. "That car's got a lot of miles on it. I'm not sure it would make it all the way up to Washington."

"No, Bella, definitely not. I'm not letting my baby drive halfway across the country by herself," Renee stated with a decisive shake of her head. I was always her _baby_ when I wanted to do something she didn't think was safe.

"Oh, well, it was worth a shot," I mumbled, shrugging.

"Well, we need to talk to your father, I guess," she began, turning around and walking off right in the middle of her sentence. I had to follow her to let her know it was already taken care of. That got a little rise out of her, but she was over her pique in no time. At least _some_ things never changed. I would definitely miss her, but I could get used to living with someone who wasn't so flighty. Charlie was stable and practical. This would be a good move for me.

It would.

~*~

I only thought I saw the black Jag once more after that. My remaining time in Phoenix flew by in a holiday rush of shopping, packing, and organizing. I was now the proud owner of a brand new, waterproof parka and a pair of wellies since my mother insisted that all it ever did in Forks was rain. My bags were filled with new, warm clothes, and I still had more to pack. Maybe Mom _was_ feeling a little guilty at how easily she'd agreed to let me go. However, the more thermal shirts and hooded sweatshirts I packed away, the less enthusiastic I was to see my new home.

I hated rain. I was like my mother in that way; that was why we lived in the desert. But every time I tried to change my mind and stay in Phoenix, I was reminded of the Incident That Shall Never Be Mentioned, and I was ready to get the heck out of there.

Christmas was fairly uneventful. Mom fussed over me because I'd be leaving in four days. School began the Monday after New Year's Day, and I didn't want to draw more attention to myself as the new kid by starting late.

I had to suppress a smile at my gift, a small digital camera and a photo album. She probably wanted me to send her the silly thing after I filled it with pictures.

"Thank you, Mom," I said, hugging her tightly. "You, too, Phil." I squeaked out as he gave me one of his rib-cracking hugs.

"You're going to break her, Phil!" Renee laughed, taking my camera and taking a few quick pictures of us as I nearly suffocated. I eyed her after Phil let me go, raising my eyebrow. She shrugged. "I put the batteries in before I wrapped it. It's Christmas! People take pictures on Christmas."

"It's okay, Mom. I just wish you'd warn me. Christmas morning pictures in pajamas are only cute when you're a little kid."

"Bella, you will always be cute to me. And you'll always be my little girl," she finished, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. A watery smile appeared on her face. "I'm going to miss you, Baby."

"I'll miss you, too," I said, past the growing lump in my throat. "I can stay, Mom..."

She stared at me for a minute, a glazed look in her eye, before something cleared in a split second. "No, honey, you need to spend this time with your father. I've had you for seventeen years. I think it's time I learned to share," she said with a sad little laugh. Phil patted her shoulder gently before leaving the room, giving us a little time alone.

"Well, okay, then...we're not going to cry, right?" I stated with a resolute nod. Renee nodded back, and we both shared a laugh. "Now, what are we going to do with this camera and the rest of this beautiful, sunny day?"

"We're going to stay in, of course, and watch the all-day marathon of _A Christmas Story,_ just like always!" She was grinning now, and the moment was forgotten.

We spent the day in our pajamas, watching movies and taking pictures. We had breakfast for dinner, just like we did every year. All in all, it was a really good Christmas, and I hoped it set the tone for the year ahead.

I only had to adjust to a new school, new home, new climate, and an essentially new parent. How hard could it be?

* * *

_Do you like? Y/Y? Then let us know! We need validation and want your comments! The next chapter will be more of Bella - and they'll finally meet! We know that's what you're all salivating for. _

_One last thing - Echoes and I are judges in the Fun With Your Clothes On Contest. That's right, we want your dry humps, your leg hitches, your jizz-in-my-pants moments. Contest is open for submission now. For full details, see the contest profile at __**http://www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/u/2291087/**_


	4. Bella Swan, This is Your Life

_SM owns the characters, but the plot is ours. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Many, many thanks to our awesome betas, __K__arentwilighted and ladyrip, for spiffing this up and making me doubt my fly grammar skills. Thanks and kisses to our pre-readers, LaraIsAwkward and ilsuocantante. We're so grateful to have you all on board, ladies!_

_Hello again! Let's see what happens when our two main characters finally set eyes on one another, shall we?_

_

* * *

  
_

**Chapter 4: Bella Swan, This Is Your Life**

I was a magnet for weirdos. It was the only explanation I could muster as I sighed, putting my ear-buds back in for the fortieth time since we'd been cleared to use our electronics. There I'd been, all excited about having a row to myself, the airplane door about to close, when some joker had barreled down the jetway, yammering on his cell phone about something he obviously considered more important than life or death. Though there were plenty of free rows, as the flight was fairly empty, Mr. Important Businessman chose mine.

I attempted to ignore him as he fiddled with his things, shoving his laptop in the seat-pocket in front of him and turning that stupid air hole up to full blast. He obviously didn't realize that sitting in that stream of recycled air was much like bathing in a river of raw sewage. When he took off his shoes and socks, I knew I was in for an unpleasant couple of hours.

_At least he's going to be working,_ I thought. _He won't be one of those annoying "talkers."_

And as soon as the thought crossed my mind, he'd started talking to me like I was his long-lost best friend. It was like the world's most unpleasant game. I'd bury my nose in the SkyMall catalog; he'd tell me about his super-important job. When the all-clear came for electronic devices and I slipped in my ear-buds, he decided it was appropriate to complain that his wife never wore real clothes now that they had kids.

This went on for _hours_, or at least, it seemed that way. Then I noticed the beverage cart approaching, which meant I was going to be trapped here for quite a while yet. At this rate, I'd be dead of boredom and annoyance before we landed. I thought I caught the flight attendant giving me a sympathetic glance as she handed me my coke, and I seriously considered passing her a note begging for help.

Finally, we began our descent into Sea-Tac, and I was ecstatic. As we sped down the runway, the plane shuddering as we slowed rapidly, I was very aware that my life was about to change irrevocably. Rain splattered against the small, oval windows, tapping relentlessly on the glass. Those stupid raindrops were taunting me.

_There's no going back now, Bella. Welcome to your new life._

_Hooray._

_--  
_

Charlie met me at baggage claim, where he hugged me uncomfortably, muttering how much I'd grown since he saw me last. I didn't mind because small-talk was about as complicated it got with Charlie. We waited for forty-five minutes before my lone, giant suitcase lumbered up the conveyor belt. I huffed a relieved sigh when we finally left, even if I now had to spend the next three or four hours in a police car.

The ride back to Forks managed to be both awkward and comfortable. I hadn't even known that was possible. I couldn't quite explain it, but I sort of sensed my dad felt the same way. Most of the time, my anxiety came from worrying if others around me were uncomfortable with the silence. Then I'd start to wonder if I was normal, because silence in a shared, confined space honestly didn't bother me.

The silence didn't bother Charlie, either. It was kind of cool. At least I didn't have to worry whether or not we'd get along. We were exactly alike ― hiding behind reserve and reticence, and quite enjoying it.

Well, I didn't _mind_ it...but maybe "enjoy" was too strong a word.

The house was just as I remembered: same white paint, about five years past due for a good painting, the same huge picture window facing the street. I remembered how angry Charlie had been when I dirtied it with chubby, paint-covered hands during one of my summer visits.

"Painting this summer, Dad?" I asked with a smirk. We did this every time I visited.

"You know it," he replied dryly. "Billy's bringing the ladder, I'm bringing the beer." He held open the door, urging me through.

"Dad! That's so wrong. He can't walk!"

"Who do you think I stole the joke from?"

"Now you've stooped to stealing jokes," I laughed, hefting my bag over my shoulders and heading for my old room.

He followed, a soft, rumbling laugh betraying his presence behind me. "I guess you know where everything is." Awkwardness was written across his face as he tried to think of something else to say.

"Yeah, I've got it," I answered easily.

"Welcome home, Bella." He patted the doorframe a couple times and turned away, likely escaping to whatever last bastion of bachelorhood he'd saved for himself. He'd gone from single to single father, almost overnight. I couldn't remember a time I'd spent with him that was longer than a couple months for summer vacation. And those times were even rarer these days, our visits limited to two weeks a year in a cabin surrounded by giant redwoods and deep blue churning seas.

"Thanks, Dad," I whispered to the empty room, taking in the familiar childish drawings and art projects decorating the walls.

_Well, here I am, Forks. Do your worst_.

--

Grocery shopping was my priority for the next two days. After that, I spent most of Saturday unpacking the non-perishable items. I wasn't sure if my father had ever eaten in his kitchen when I wasn't around, and I knew to expect the provisions to be in a sorry state when I first arrived. But this was worse than I'd ever seen.

_Jeez, Charlie...has your blood made the transformation to complete cholesterol yet?_ I knew what he ate at the diner ― french fries, chicken fried steak, chicken fried chicken... See a theme?

Late Saturday evening, I collapsed in bed after what seemed like _ages_ of hard labor. Charlie and I were full, there were lasagnas in the freezer, the kitchen was clean, and I was dead tired. So far, this was shaping up to be worse than living with Renee. At least she'd been a bit of a stickler about having a clean living space. I pacified the resentful child inside by reminding myself that I'd only have to work this hard once. It was a lot easier to _keep_ a house clean than to _actually_ clean it.

Right?

The next morning, I woke to a horrible noise outside my window. It rumbled and shuddered, coming closer and closer until it suddenly stopped with a painfully loud bang. Squinting at the clock, I sighed when I realized I'd slept away half of my last day of freedom.

Sleepily, I made my way downstairs in search of food, tunnel vision leading me in the right direction, where I mechanically poured a bowl of cereal and ate it at the kitchen table. Charlie still hadn't shown by the time I dumped the remaining milk down the sink, and as I went back through the living room, I heard male voices in the front yard.

"Dad, did you hear that awful noise...?" I trailed off as I took in the rusty red jalopy that was backed into the driveway. The hood was up, making the old truck look like a fish long past its prime, jaw gaping wide with its last breath. "Did someone break down in the driveway?"

The thing looked like it could eat Phil's station wagon for breakfast. It was a relic of a bygone era, one where cars were American, made of heavy steel, and ran on leaded gasoline ― in other words, it was a hideous, big, red monster.

"Bella!"

"Hi," I answered shyly, poking my head even farther out the door, hissing at the bone-numbing cold and hoping I wouldn't get frostbite. "Hello, Mr. Black," I said through chattering teeth, nodding at him, not willing to expose any of my extremities to the elements. Surely I would die of exposure up here.

"Been a long time," he stated, in that drawn out way some men had, those men who had a laid-back attitude on top of a lot of confidence and even more bravery. Billy Black had always reminded me of Dirty Harry, in a way. Minus the guns. And the walking..._ Oh, Lord, I shouldn't think things like that!_ "You sure have grown up since the last time I saw you," he went on, and my brain automatically filtered out the typical old person chatter ― the oohs and ahs and "Oh, you're such a grown-up young lady now"s.

My nose began to run in response to the frigid wind as more than my teeth started to chatter. Was it possible to disarticulate a skeleton by shivering?

"Yeah, it has, Mr. Black. It's good to see you. Um...Dad? I'm going to go put on a coat or four."

"Bella!" A new voice called from further out in the yard. Long, dark hair popped up from behind the hood as it slammed shut, startling me. I bumped the back of my head on the doorframe, which momentarily distracted me from the cold.

"You remember Jacob, don't you, Bella?" Charlie asked, pointing toward the boy who was rapidly crossing the yard.

"Little Jacob?" I muttered to myself, looking up at the beanpole now standing next to my dad. This couldn't possibly be the tiny kid I'd shoved into mud puddles when we were younger.

"Not so little anymore, Shorty. I'm taller than you are now," he said with a friendly smirk, but his overt familiarity with me made me a little uncomfortable. And a little scared. I was _really_ mean to Jacob back in the day...

Suddenly remembering I was dressed in pajamas and near the point of hypothermia, I stammered out an excuse and slammed the door. Figuring it would be rude to take a shower while we had guests, I almost whimpered as I passed the bathroom and all its teasing promises of hot, steamy water to soothe my chills.

Once I was suitably dressed in a thousand layers, I forced myself to show my face outside again. It was still far too cold for a rare desert flower like me, though I'd heard once that freezing to death was the way to go. Lord knows I'd been forced to read enough descriptions of it with all the Jack London they'd shoved down our throats in school.

"It's not the ice age, Bella," Jake snickered, rolling his eyes. _Okay. Now I remember why I was mean to him._

"Excuse me for not wanting to die of frostbite."

"You can't die from frostbite; you'd die from hypothermia first."

"As long as I don't have to deal with you, whatever works!" I snapped, fighting the urge to stick my tongue out at him...right after I yanked on that girly hair.

"Kids, kids," Charlie started, scowling at both of us while Billy looked on with his arms crossed over his chest, a wide grin splitting his face. "Bella, you're seventeen, not seven, so act like it." He didn't miss a beat in his rant, immediately turning to Jake. "And you ― if that's how you treat girls, no wonder you can't get a date."

Billy burst out laughing at this, smacking his son on the leg in mirth. Jake flushed scarlet; which was no small feat, taking into account the darker tone of his skin.

"See if I do you any more favors, Chief Swan," he grumbled under his breath.

"Bells, you'd better be nice to Jake if you want someone to work on your new truck," Charlie added, shoving his hands in his pockets with a smug smile.

"I don't have a truck," I said dumbly, looking out at the yard. The only truck I saw was the monstrosity in the driveway.

"What do you think that is, Bella?" he laughed, pointing in its direction.

"That's mine?" It suddenly wasn't so hideous, now that it represented autonomous transportation.

"Yep. Why don't you try it out?"

"Wow...Dad... Wow. Thank you so much!" I stammered, very pleased with this event. Then I remembered that "my" truck was what had woken me up this morning. My baby was sick. "Are you sure it's safe? Does it work?" I asked warily, earning another dirty look from Jake. Crap. I really _was _going to have to be nice to him, if I was going to be driving that big red monster around.

"Of course it's safe," Jake scoffed. "_I_ rebuilt the engine. I just need to fiddle around with some plug wires, and she'll be good as new."

"Why don't you go show Bella the ropes," Billy suggested. "The game's about to start, and I intend to win some money off Charlie, here."

At the very mention of sports, both of them were off like a shot ― pretty impressive, considering Billy was in a wheelchair, and our house was definitely not handicapped-accessible.

Jake and I just stared at each other like two wet, cranky cats, coolly assessing one another. Finally, I decided that I shouldn't be hanging on to my grudges for all the frogs, worms, bugs, and dirt he'd shoved in my face when we were kids. We'd probably be wasting a lot of time together, considering how often Charlie and Billy hung out.

I stuck out my hand. "Truce?"

He looked at my outstretched arm for a long moment, distrust written plainly on his face. Then he sighed, gingerly shaking my hand. I couldn't help but giggle at his weak grip.

"Come on, I _know _Billy and Charlie taught you better than that," I said. "I've got a stronger grip than you do."

"I just didn't want to crush your hand, Shorty." _Cocky bastard_.

"Whatever, Jake," I sighed, rolling my eyes as I went to the truck.

"You know you want tickets to this gun show, babe," he said, unaffected by my dismissal.

"You've got to be kidding me," I muttered as I hopped into the driver's seat. Jake climbed in on the other side, showing me how to run Bertha the Big Behemoth. He was surprisingly knowledgeable about automobiles, which made me feel a bit better about the idea of him working on the truck.

Afterward, we went back inside and I offered Jake a snack, in return for his tutelage in all things regarding my decrepit truck. He single-handedly polished off all of the lasagna leftovers as I watched in shock. It was like watching buzzards picking clean a carcass ― stomach turning, yet sort of fascinating because of the way they managed to get every salvageable bit of food.

"You sure are a good cook, Bella," he said as he finished, sighing and leaning back in his chair. I was speechless ― until he let out a loud belch.

"Let me give you a couple pointers, Jake," I said, giving him a dirty look. "While your buddies might greatly appreciate your ability to burp the alphabet―"

"Backwards and forwards," he interrupted with a smug smile.

"What?"

"I can burp the alphabet backwards and forwards." He spoke to me like I was a slow child.

"I'm so proud," I snapped, yanking his plate away and placing it in the sink, just in case he decided to start licking it. "As I was saying, while that might be impressive to your fourteen-year-old friends―"

"Sixteen. I'm sixteen," he said, pouting at my underestimation of his age.

"Fine, sixteen!" I huffed, wishing I'd kept the plate so I could use it to knock some sense into him. "_Anyway_, you might keep in mind that girls really don't care for that sort of thing. We also don't like being offered 'tickets to the gun show,' and we don't like being interrupted."

"Why, Bella, are you trying to tell me you're attracted to me?" The kid had the gall to smirk at me!

"If you're an example of Forks High's standard of educational excellence, I'm gonna be smarter than the teachers. Your listening comprehension is terrible." I shook my head and stared at him in disbelief.

"Oh, I don't go to the public school. The Rez has its own."

"I fear for the future of your tribe, Jake."

"Jeez, Bella. Learn how to take a joke. You _do_ know what those are, right?"

_Is he accusing me of not having a sense of humor?_ I just looked at him stonily, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't be horribly offensive.

"I'm just pulling your leg, Bella. What happened to our truce?"

"We don't have one if you're going to keep making stupid comments," I muttered.

"Fine. You're ugly. Happy now?" he was grinning, and I had to return it. I might have even laughed a bit, but I still wouldn't answer. "Come on, Bella. Let's give it a rest and go make fun of our dads instead of each other."

It was an appealing idea. "Sounds like a plan. And Jake?" I asked as he started to leave the room.

"Yeah, Shorty?"

"You're ugly too." He took it like the compliment I meant it to be, laughing as we joined Charlie and Billy in the living room.

--

When I pulled into the tiny parking lot of Forks High the next morning, everyone stared. Everyone. _Well, it's official ― my life has turned into a John Hughes movie. _Too bad it wasn't _Ferris Bueller's Day Off..._I'd be pretending to be sick right now.

My soon-to-be classmates didn't even bother to hide their curiosity, their eyes gleaming in avarice like ravens looking at a shiny new bauble. I had to force myself to get out of the truck, fighting back the irrational fear that they'd all descend upon me, _en masse_, as soon as I opened the door. Of course, that was just my overactive imagination at work. They didn't mob me, though their stares followed me as I crossed the lot.

School in Forks was much the same as school in Phoenix ― boring and easy. I managed to make a friend in first period without even trying. Jessica Stanley was the bubbly cheerleader type that I usually did my best to avoid, but she seemed nice enough. She was in most of my morning classes, and though she bombarded me with neverending chatter, it was nice to have someone to show me around. The morning passed quickly, and before I knew it, we were heading to the cafeteria for lunch.

I could feel almost every pair of eyes on me as Jessica and I walked into the room. Chattering away, she was pointing out the different cliques and sets, explaining who sat with whom and mapping out the lunchtime landscape.

"I always sit with Mike," she said as we shuffled through the lunch line. I couldn't tell if she'd taken a breath since she started talking. "And usually Angela and this kid Ben, and Eric, and Lauren, and..." Half-listening, I took my tray like everyone else and slid it down the line, choosing from the limited options only institutional foodservice could offer. I briefly wondered if they served the same food in Washington State's prisons.

After we paid, Jessica grabbed my arm, practically dragging me to her usual table. We were the first ones to arrive, and I found myself desperately wishing for more people to show up. I needed a Jessica buffer, and soon. Picking at my food, I nodded and smiled in the appropriate places, even answering her yes or no questions. She was so busy talking, I doubted she noticed my less than verbose responses. One by one, the others filtered in.

The first was a petite girl with light brown hair and a friendly face. "Hi, I'm Angela," she said softly, taking the seat next to me. "You must be Chief Swan's daughter. Isabella, right?"

"Just Bella. No one ever calls me by my full name, unless I'm in trouble," I said lamely, returning her smile.

"Well, Bella, welcome to Forks High," she said with a smirk. "In all its wet glory."

"Yeah, I mean, who was stupid enough to build a high school with a boatload of separate buildings in a town where it rains all the time," Jessica babbled, pushing around the lettuce on her plate. Come to think of it, I didn't think she ever stopped _moving_ either.

Five minutes later, I'd been introduced to Mike, which I honestly could have done without. He was way too touchy-feely, and I was grateful Jessica and Angela sat on either side of me. It would have been horrible if I had to sit next to him ― I'd probably have to spend the entire lunch period terrified he'd put his hand on my leg or something.

I also met Eric, Ben, Tyler, and Lauren, getting eager grins from the boys and an icy glare from Lauren, who'd evidently decided I should be hated on sight. I despised that type of girl. Phoenix had been full of them.

While everyone began talking about their day so far, I took the opportunity to peek at my surroundings. Everywhere I looked, eyes met mine and then flickered away.

_This whole "new girl" business sucks. I hate being stared at.  
__  
_When I turned my gaze to the far corner of the cafeteria, I finally encountered a table whose occupants weren't staring at me. There were five of them, clustered at one end of the long table, but none of the other students even went near it, though there was plenty of room. The three boys and two girls were absorbed in each other, ignoring the rest of the student body.

They were all ridiculously good-looking, and a study in icy contrasts. Their skin was pale, just like everyone else here ― where it seemed the sun _never_ shined ― but this group was near the albino side of the spectrum. However, it didn't detract at all from their visual appeal.

I noticed that some kids were alternating their spying between me and the table full of Zoolander wannabes at the other end of the room. Four of them were paired off into couples ― a tall, lanky blond guy sat with his arm around a very small girl with short, wispy black hair as they whispered to each other, heads close together, ignoring the other three. Across from them, a knockout blonde sat very close to a huge guy with curly dark hair. Continuing my assessment, my gaze slid over to the last boy, pausing to admire the broad yet lean shoulders underneath his charcoal-colored sweater before reaching his face.

_Holy. Cow. Dear Santa, I'd like one of _him_ for Christmas..._

I almost choked on a cherry tomato, rather ungracefully coughing it out onto the table. Everyone stared in silence before Lauren started laughing in a snide tone.

"I guess they didn't teach you table manners in Phoenix, did they?" she asked with saccharine sweetness.

"I guess I won't be counting on you to give me the Heimlich Maneuver if I really do choke," I returned, my cheeks playing chameleon and trying to match the tomato I'd just embarrassed myself with. The temptation to throw the half-chewed tomato in Lauren's face was strong, but I resisted. I'd probably miss, anyway.

Thank God Mr. Delicious over there hadn't been witness to my humiliation.

"That didn't take long," Jessica giggled, rolling her eyes in my direction and making me even more uncomfortable. _Oh, this day is getting better and better..._ "Already eying the Cullens, huh? Good luck with that."

"Who are they?" I couldn't resist asking, as I stared over at the physical representation of all my hormones' dreams. "You say their name like they're some kind of unit. Like the Partridge family or something."

"More like the Brady Bunch," she snorted. "They're the hot doctor's kids. All adopted...and they're _together_. Like, dating! I mean, they're not blood-related or anything, but still, it's like, weird..." I tuned her out once again and stared some more, half-wishing for one of those bibs people wore when eating lobster.

Mr. I-Should-Be-An-Underwear-Model's hair was dark, yet shone with hues that ran the spectrum from golden to rusty brick, the strands coming together to form a beautiful, reddish mess of cowlicks that was more attractive than it should have been. My palms actually itched with the need to try and smooth it into submission.

His profile should have been stamped in bronze to cast a million coins, his strong jaw and nearly straight nose giving him a classic handsomeness that was more appealing to me than anyone I'd ever seen before. Pale, full lips pursed slightly as he focused on the book in front of him, leaving the food on his tray untouched. Heavy brows winged down over deep-set eyes in concentration as he flipped the page with a long-fingered hand. I had to remind myself to breathe.

"The one on the end there," I whispered to Jessica, not bothering to wait until she was finished talking. After all, she didn't really ever offer me the same courtesy, so I figured the best way to get somewhere with Jessica Stanley was just to barrel straight ahead. "Is he with anyone?"

"Edward Cullen? Ha," she laughed. "Everyone wishes. Even a few guys. He doesn't date. If you ask me, he's either gay or some kind of freak. No man _that_ pretty is ever straight ― on T.V., anyway." In my opinion, Jessica sounded a little bitter. I wondered how many times this _Edward_ had turned her down.

The old-fashioned nature of his name surprised me. Never had I imagined someone with such a name could look that good. "Edward" was a name for people who looked like Ted Kennedy, or the crotchety old man that always yelled when kids ran through his yard. Not this...this _personification_ of every naughty dream I'd ever had in my short life.

"Why do they sit alone?"

"Because they're a bunch of rich snobs," Lauren said venomously, raising an eyebrow at me. "And they're not going to socialize with the police chief's daughter." She eyed my comfortable hooded sweatshirt and thermal henley with distaste. Evidently, she didn't approve of my fashion choices.

I ignored her, letting the conversation flow around me once again as I watched him ―_ Edward_. Again and again, my eyes were drawn to his face, eagerly awaiting every slight shift in his expression. He looked tired, faint lavender circles under his eyes clouding the pale canvas of his face.

Suddenly, he looked up, his dark eyes grabbing mine and refusing to let go. My heart and my stomach rushed to switch places before both dropped to the floor in abject surrender. It felt like he was trying to look inside me, to discover what made me work. A frown of confusion marred his features, sending a shiver down my spine that finally unlocked my muscles. My cheeks were on fire as I ripped my eyes from his, staring straight down at my largely untouched tray.

"Edward Cullen is staring at you," Angela whispered from my other side, smiling at me in excitement.

"So is everyone else. New kid, remember?" I mumbled, desperately trying to hide my intense reaction to Mr. Edward "Come-Here-and-Fix-My-Bed-Head" Cullen. I couldn't resist one more peek, getting caught in his piercing stare once more, my entire body flushing hot in response. This time, it was he who looked away, his attention diverted by a wadded-up napkin square on the nose. I giggled as he turned a scowl on his stepbrother ― the huge one ― for throwing things at him. At my laughter, he turned, those all-seeing eyes catching me looking, and I stared at the tabletop again, not daring to look up until the bell rang.

He was gone when I looked over as I gathered my things, a pang of disappointment hitting me in the gut...and a little lower. _Did you think he was going to offer to carry your books, Bella? _I asked myself snidely. Jeez...was the guy wearing some sort of pheromone called "Bella's Kryptonite?" I almost hoped I wouldn't have any classes with him ― the thought of being in a small, enclosed room with him was pretty daunting. Would I be able to keep from leaping over the desks in a clumsy rush to rip off his clothes?

I had a good idea how I'd be spending the rest of my day: trying to ward off fantasies of what was under a certain _very lucky_ charcoal grey sweater.

To Mike's eternal joy and my exasperation, he and I were both headed for biology, and he insisted upon walking me. He didn't offer to carry my books. This was good ― at least I still had some sort of weapon if he kept it up with the grabby hands. Mike had absolutely no concept of personal space, as I'd learned earlier.

In preparation for the hike to my next class, I pulled up the industrial-sized hood of my parka, trying to ignore the rest of the students who were eying me like I was suiting up for a space walk.

Mike laughed when I pulled my umbrella out and took a deep breath to brave the elements. "It's not _that_ bad, Bella."

"You try growing up where the average January temperature is sixty-six degrees," I explained, barreling through the door and out into the yuck, fighting with my umbrella at the same time. He reached out and caught my elbow, tugging me back to his side.

"At least let me carry your umbrella," he wheedled. I jerked my arm back, wondering what signal I'd given him that said it was okay for him to touch me.

"Really, Mike, it's fine. I've managed for this long on my own," I replied with a small smirk. Desperate to take his attention away from trying to grab parts of my body or things on my person, I latched onto the one ― and only ― thing we had in common. "Do you have any idea what we'll be working on in biology?"

He rolled his eyes and shrugged, shoving his octopus hands in his pockets, thank God. "Some stupid flatworm shit. Something about the animal kingdom and all its phyto...photo...photosynthesis!" he finally finished, his eyes lighting up like a puppy's. A puppy who was mentally challenged. "You know, grouping animals together and stuff."

"You mean animals and their assigned _phyla_?" I asked. "I hate to break it to you, but photosynthesis is how plants make food."

A blush that could have rivaled one of mine stained his already ruddy cheeks, making him look like a blond candy apple. I hated candy apples.

"Yeah, uh...that's what I meant," he mumbled. I bit my lip to hold in the laughter that was just dying to get out. We were silent as we neared the building that housed our next class, and the rain was beginning to pick up. Increasing the pace of my steps, I slipped on a tuft of grass growing from a crack in the path.

I thought I was headed for a nice butt-plant pike on the asphalt, but Mike was all too happy to catch me, one of his hands grazing my boob in the process. I yelped, and he set me on my feet quickly. Shooting him a sideways glance and a mumbled thanks, I just caught the smug grin he couldn't hide. Bastard knew exactly what he'd done. _Gross. I need a shower._

"So, you're like...smart about this science stuff?" he asked, a new, speculative gleam in his eye that I didn't like one bit.

"I don't know...my grades were good back home," I hedged, trying to calculate the possible direction of his new line of questioning.

He reached for the door, intending to open it for me, but I beat him to it. It opened to the inside, and I just knew the sleaze would stand right in the middle so I'd have to squeeze past him to get in. I folded my umbrella and started down the hallway, only to be stopped as Mike grabbed my wrist. Someone really needed to have a conversation with him about respecting personal boundaries. Maybe I'd mention something to Charlie...I was sure he'd jump at the chance to terrify a teenage boy.

"Biology's this way," he said, jerking his head in the other direction with a grin, still not releasing my wrist. I found myself being towed down the hallway after him as he kept talking. "So, I was thinking... We have assigned partners for the year, but maybe you could ask Mr. Banner ― that's our teacher ― if you could pair up with me? You know, 'cause you already know me," he added with a wink. _Oh, no way_. _No. Way._

"That's okay, Mike. What would happen to your current lab partner? I don't want to inconvenience anyone," I rushed out, trying to discreetly remove my wrist from his grasp.

"Who cares?" he shrugged, towing me toward the next doorway we came across. I finally managed to get away from his iron grip and resisted the urge to wipe it on my jeans ― I could do that after I sat down. Scanning the room, I noticed the unmistakable hair of Mr. Delicious among the slightly damp heads of the other students.

_Great. I hope I have to sit somewhere in front of him, so I won't be tempted to stare. I'll never remember any of the lectures if I spend all class period drooling over him..._

Mike followed me to Mr. Banner's desk, hovering about like a mother hen. I wondered if I'd have to introduce myself in front of the class, thinking I'd rather be subjected to public speaking every day than have to sit by Mike for the rest of the semester.

"Take your seat, Mr. Newton," said Mr. Banner, waving him off without even looking up. _I think I'm going to like you, Mr. Banner. _ Mike sighed and slunk off, slumping onto his lab stool somewhere behind me. I didn't watch, not wanting to give him any kind of encouragement. "You must be Isabella Swan," he said, finally looking up.

"Just Bella," I said softly, already feeling twenty or so pairs of eyes burning a hole in my back.

"Well, Miss Swan," he began, gesturing behind me, "as there's only one open seat, you can introduce yourself to your new partner for the semester, Mr. Cullen."

_Oh, shit._

_Is he _kidding _me?_ I couldn't decide if today was the worst or the best day of my life.

"You can take your seat, Miss Swan," Mr. Banner prompted, giving me a strange look. Nodding mutely, I whirled around, my hair fanning around with the sudden movement as I searched the classroom for the empty seat...and the boy who was so ridiculously pretty he was terrifying to a shy girl like myself.

Of course, he wasn't hard to spot. Neither was his burning gaze as he stared at me, his strange, pitch-black eyes filled with revulsion, like he wanted to sear the flesh from my bones. A cold chill skittered down my spine, and my breath froze in my chest.

My question had just been answered ― this was the _worst_ day of my life.

* * *

_So, I didn't _really_ lie...they sort of met. But you'll have to wait for EchoesOfTwilight's next __installment to see the fallout. Believe me, you want to see this from EPOV anyway, right? Direct all hate-mail at me. If you guys read Work in Progress, you know I almost never give you cliffies, so let me have my fun.__  
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__So...let us know what you think, please? Things are really getting going, and we're so excited to show you more. We love to read your feedback, so don't be shy about dropping us a line!__  
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__Finally, Echoes and I are judges for the Fun With Your Clothes On Contest. Give us your leg hitches, your dry humps, your naughty times...but no pole in the hole, please. Visit the contest profile at __**http:// www . fanfiction . net / u / 2291087 /**__ for details. You've got until April 17th to enter.__  
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__Wait, I lied. I entered the Awkward Contest...yeah, I know, I'm riding this issue hard (no pun intended, can you believe it?). You can find the story under my profile (araeo), since I don't want to screw up the anonymous judging portion of the contest. Voting is going on now, and lasts until 11:59 p.m. EST on March 31st. Visit the profile to read the entries (and vote for me? please?). __  
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__Okay, annoying A/N over. Thank you all for reading! I hope you're enjoying this as much as we're loving writing it.__  
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